We are pleased to advise patients that with effect from Monday 4 November through to Friday 28 March we are going to have access to increased numbers of GP appointments on Monday's, some Wednesday's and Friday's to help us cope with winter health pressures.

These appointments will be shared with 3 other surgeries in our Primary Care Network (PCN) and patients will be asked to attend their consultation at Sandgate Road Surgery on Sandgate Road (just before the A259 descends into Sandgate). These appointments will be at Sandgate Road as they are the only surgery with spare clinical room capacity and we would like to thank our colleagues there and the PCN management team for their hard work in setting up these appointments.

These additional appointments will be triaged on eConsult inputs in exactly the same way as all other appointments. If our triaging GP/ACP decides a patient meets the criteria to be booked into one of these appointments we will be in contact with that patient to make the necessary arrangements. As with every single appointment we ask that patients advise us if an appointment is arranged and they cannot attend - please help us not to waste valuable appointments.

UPDATE

After the prolems caused by the global IT outage this good news is that this morning all of our systems are working normally and we should resume normal service from tomorrow morning with our clinical eConsult platform opening at 0700 hours as usual.

There will of course be pressue on our services as a result of lost time and we would therefore ask all patients to consider self-help and alternative solutions, for example use of pharmacies, where they are able.

We hope all patient are having a good weekend.

We are regularly being asked whether we can prescribe Ozempic (or similar medications containing the active ingredient semaglutide) for weight-loss and therefore thought we ought to place some information on our website so patients can understand the current situation.

Currently Ozempic can only be prescribed for patients with type-2 diabetes and this medication isn't in fact licensed in the UK as a weight-loss drug. There has been comment to the effect that some surgeries and other healthcare facilities are prescribing Ozempic 'off - label' though we are yet to know anyone who is.

Here at Guildhall Surgery our policy is that we cannot prescribe any medication for purposes other than it has been licensed for and, whilst we understand some patients may be disappointed by that position, we will not be changing that policy.

Of course should the current prescribing status of Ozempic chnage then we will review our policy accordingly.

To understand how general practice is working to try and provide the services our patients require please read the general practice update, published by Kent & Medway ICB, giving the latest facts

General Practice Update - February 2024

We would like to advise patients that with effect from 7 May we intend to modernise our processes for handling Doctor’s appointments with a system that involves all patient requests being triaged by a GP before any Doctors appointments are made.

It is our intention to use the ‘eConsult’ online consultation system to gather information from patients making a request for a Doctor’s appointment, including requests for sick notes, test results, prescription requests etc. and once the eConsult has been received a GP will triage the information provided before deciding what the necessary care should be.  

For the majority of patients their eConsult can be completed by themselves online using their mobiles, laptops, tablets etc. but alternatively there will be a screen available at the surgery during opening hours for patients to use if they wish. For those patients who are unable to complete the eConsult themselves a member of the team here will be able to assist them and that will include taking details over the phone. 

Each eConsult will provide the patient with a time and date by which they will hear back from us so this change will also result in much clearer communications for patients.

Once the triage is completed, patients will be contacted to make the arrangements the GP has decided upon. These arrangements could include but are not limited to: 

• A same day appointment with a GP, ACP or nurse 
• A routine pre-booked appointment with a GP, ACP or nurse 
• Referral to the Urgent Treatment or Walk-In Centres at the Royal Victoria Hospital
• Referral to a pharmacist under ‘Pharmacy First’ scheme
• An appointment with a physiotherapist, social prescriber, dietitian, podiatrist or other allied health professional
• Self-help advice direct from the GP

Further information will be provided as we get closer to May but in the meantime we ask patients to keep watch on our website at www.guildhallstreetsurgery.co.uk or to follow our Facebook page Guildhall Facebook Page where up to date information will be provided.

Finally, please note this change only concerns appointments with Doctors. Appointments with the nursing team or for long-term condition reviews will remain as they are today.

The practice has changed its process for urgent prescription requests. This is due to many patients requesting medication on the day and the negative affect this is having upon the service being offered to our wider patient population. Please ensure that you order your prescriptions in plenty of time to avoid the situation where you may run out of medication.

Urgent prescription requests are ONLY for a medication which a patient would need within 24 hours to prevent them from becoming severely unwell, as listed in a table approved by the GP's and widely used elsewhere.

Some medications can be safely missed for a day or two and you may be advised that your request will be processed routinely. Prescriptions are normally processed within 1-2 days of you requesting them. We recommend allowing a further 3-5 days for your pharmacy to get them ready.

We will not issue urgent prescriptions for items that can be bought over the counter.

We recommend using the NHS App to order your medicines. This has an up-to-date list of all your medicines and makes ordering quick and simple. You can use either a smartphone or a computer to use it.

For more information, search for ‘NHS App’ using a search engine or your app store, or watch a quick video by clicking on the link below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0SCcLtw8JA

Please be aware that at the present time, weight loss injectables are not currently available on prescription via Primary Care (GP services). 

For patients who meet the criteria a referral to a specialist weight management service. 

At present Ozempic is only licenced for use in the management of type 2 diabetes and cannot be prescribed off label for weight loss. 

In regards to Semalutide work is being progressed with local specialist weight management services and other stakeholders to implement the new NICE guidelines in due course. 

Patients will be updated regarding available services within the next few months. 

Guildhall Surgery work as part of a primary care network (PCN) which has brought general practices together to work at scale and deliver a wider range of services to patients, involving a wider set of staff roles than might be feasible in individual practices, for example, first contact physiotherapy, extended access, pharmacists, social prescribing and dietitians. 

This means that when you contact Guildhall Surgery for an appointment our reception team have a number of different services they can book you an appointment with. Some are based at Guildhall Surgery and others at sites around Folkestone and beyond.

In order for the receptionist to book you the most appropriate appointment it is important that they ask questions to ascertain to the right service for you. The guidance the receptionists use to direct you to a service is based upon your GP’s advice.

Guildhall Surgery operates a GP triage system. This means that all initial appointments with a GP will be via a telephone or online consultation. If the GP feels that a face to face appointment is required they will arrange this for you. This system enables the GP’s to have more patient contacts per day, increasing the number of patients who can access our service. It has also significantly reduced wasted appointments where patients do not attend for a pre-booked face to face appointment.

Patients are able to book face to face appointments with our nursing team directly through our reception team. We have good availability for the majority of nursing face to face appointments, so if the matter is not urgent please consider phoning later in the day when the phone lines are not as busy.

We are in the process of preparing to implement online booking of appointments for certain type of visits. This will increase patient choice in how they access our services and reduce the demand on the phone system and hopefully lead to shorter waiting times.

Since arund midday on Thursday 16 March all GP surgeries in Kent have suffered serious communications issues due to a major IT problem affecting all web-based systems.

This has meant that our telephone system can only accommodate a single incoming call at any time, we have no access to emails, we are not receiving contacts via our website until many hours after input and we are unable to access eConsult submissions.

Fortunately our medical systems are still fully operational and therefore we are still consultating with patients as normal with our clnicians having full access to medical records.

We can only apologise for any inconvenience caused which is beyond our control. It is hoped that this situation will have imporved by Monday morning but that is not guaranteed and communications problems may persist but rest assured we will do all that we can to provide service to patients until normal service is resumed.

As a result of a signifcant increase in the numbers of telephone calls being made into the surgery requesting prescriptions we would like to remind patients that we do not take prescription requests over the phone.

Prescriptions can easily be requested by:-

• making the request through your chosen pharmacy
• dropping a request form into the surgery which is possible 24/7
• using the online forms on this website
• or by email to kmicb.guildhall.surgery@nhs.net

We would also like to remind patients that 4 working days should be allowed for prescriptions to be issued.

Thank you for your co-operation.

Due to intense pressure and significant demand for appointments, we may take longer than normal to respond to your queries, and we recognise many patients are waiting longer than we would like. With this in mind, we ask that you continue to do everything you can to consider all the avenues to seek help stop, think and choose. In addition, to enable our practice to manage urgent demand and to allow a recovery period, we may at times need to pause access to e-consults

This year the earliest anyone aged between 18 and 64 can get their flu vaccination this year (unless they have underlying vulnerabilities in which case they can get their vaccination now - please contact the surgery) is on Saturday 15 October and we shall be operating a 'turn up and go' flu vaccination clinic for this group on that Saturday morning. 

NHS England recommend all eligiable patients have their flu vaccination this year due to concerns that the flu virus may be more prevalent this year after a couple of years where the Covid virus has been the bigger problem.

Please note the following information.

How do I make my appointment? Appointments won't be necessary. We will be ready to provide vacciantions to all patients on a 'turn up and go' basis.

What will happen when I arrive? We shall be delivering the vaccinations inside the surgery this year so patients will simply enter via the main doors where our team will look after you from that point onward. It might be that there will be some queing at the front door but we'll be doing all we can to keep that to a minimum

How is this different to normal? This isn't any different from what we used to consider normal but it is differnet from the past couple of years when we delivered the vaccinations outside in our car parking area due to covid restrictions. 

How long will it take? Delivery of the flu vaccinations is very swift taking just a couple of minutes for each patient. 

Will I just be offered my flu vaccination? This will be for flu vacciantions only. We will not be delivering the Covid autumn booster at the same time.

What do I do after I’ve had my vaccination? As soon as you have had your flu vaccination you can leave.

Please be advised that Guildhall Surgery won't be involved in the delivery of the autumn booster vaccinations and that the vaccination centre at FOLCA will not be reopening for this purpose.

Patients wanting their autumn booster will be able to book their appointment on the national booking website - see this link https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-vaccination/book-coronavirus-vaccination/ - or by calling 119. There are a number of local outlets for receiving the autumn booster vaccinations.

We would like to advise all our patients that pre-booked appointments for Monday 19 September 2022 will go ahead as normal and should patients not wish to attend their appointment on that day they should advise us in advance either by phone on the 'Cancel an appointment' facility on the website at https://www.guildhallstreetsurgery.co.uk/edit/cancel-an-appointmnet-form

Patients coming to the surgery should come to the front entrance as normal.

Whilst ensuring the majority of our staff can pay their respects to the Queen on this day our Clinicians felt that it was also important that our patients could receive the care they needed especially as this bank holiday will likely place pressure on the number of appointments available during the rest of the week.

The surgery will however be closed for all other contact on this day and as a result patients will not be able to get through to us on the phones. Contact via eConsult and our website will remain available. Urgent cover will be provided by calling 111 (or using 111 online) and emergency cover will be via 999 as always.

We shall be running a 'turn up and go' flu vaccination clinic for all patients aged 65 and over on the morning of Saturday 24 September between 0900 and 1300 hours. NHS England recommend all eligiable patients have their flu vaccination this year due to concerns that the flu virus may be more prevalent this year after a couple of years where the Covid virus has been the bigger problem.

Please note the following information.

How do I make my appointment? Appointments won't be necessary. We will be ready to provide vacciantions to all patients on a 'turn up and go' basis.

What will happen when I arrive? We shall be delivering the vaccinations inside the surgery this year so patients will simply enter via the main doors where our team will look after you from that point onward. It might be that there will be some queing at the front door but we'll be doing all we can to keep that to a minimum

How is this different to normal? This isn't any different from what we used to consider normal but it is differnet from the past couple of years when we delivered the vaccinations outside in our car parking area due to covid restrictions. 

How long will it take? Delivery of the flu vaccinations is very swift taking just a couple of minutes for each patient. 

Will I just be offered my flu vaccination? This will be for flu vacciantions only. We will not be delivering the Covid autumn booster at the same time.

What do I do after I’ve had my vaccination? As soon as you have had your flu vaccination you can leave.

To many the Covid pandemic is over and as the wearing of face coverings out and about has reduced many think it is no longer necessary to wear face coverings anywhere at all. I'm afraid that isn't the case in healthcare settings such our surgery.

The simple fact is that Covid is still very active in the community and should healthcare employees, who are still testing on a regular basis, become infected with Covid they have to stay of work for up to 12 days, reducing the service available to patients, to ensure that they do not pass on the virus to the many vulnerable patients that they see whilst at work.

The latest guidelines of face coverings are, typically, rather vague and it has been left to the employers to decide how to proceed and at Guildhall, like the majority of GP surgeries, have taken the decision to maintain the wearing of face coverings (masks or visors) within the surgery. Therefore patients who have appointments, and may find themselves sitting in the waiting room with vulnerable patients close by, will still be required to wear a face covering to enter the surgery and we ask that all patients show appropriate understanding to co-operate accordingly.

Once patients are within the consulting rooms it may be that the clinician they are seeing will decide that that a face covering is not necessary during the consultation. This is at the clinicians perogative and will be based on a dynamic risk assessment that the clinician will carry out at the start of the consultation but suffice to say that any patient who is showing any possible Covid symptom or are vulnerable themselves will be required to keep their face covering on for the consultation.

We at Guildhall are no different to anyone else - we would love to see the end of face coverings! However, we know better than most that face coverings have contributed considerably to our staff avoiding Covid infection throughout the pandemic and helping us to keep the surgery open throughout (many many surgeries were closed due to outbreaks!) and we simply believe that for now it is in all of our interests to continue as we have been for what we hope will not be too much longer.

Thank you for your co-operation.

We are now moving to begin vaccinations children in the 5-11 year age group who are extremely clinically vulnerable.

This will commence Saturday 26th February and continuing every weekend until further notice at both Folca (formerly Debenhams) Folkestone and Dover Health Centre, Dover.

In order for your child to be vaccinated you can walk in but will need to bring a letter from either your child’s GP or Consultant confirming their eligibility for the vaccination and must be accompanied by a parent or by an appropriate adult and the childs parent available to be contacted by phone to give consent.

We also continue to offer vaccinations to 12-15yrs and adults both via walk in or a booked appointment via the National Booking System

Opening Times:

Folca (formerly Debenhams) Folkestone

Tuesdays -       8.30- 5.30

Thursdays-     8.30 - 5.30

Saturday -      8.30 - 5.30

Sunday  -        8.30 -  4.15

Dover Health Centre, Dover

Saturdays -    8.30 - 5.30

Sundays -      8.30 - 5.30

Starting Saturday 5^th  February until further notice 

Saturdays and Sundays only from 8.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m.

at FOLCA ( old Debenham building) - Sandgate Road, Folkestone 

and Dover Health Centre - Maison Dieu Road. 

Just WALK - IN or book online via the National Booking System 

Please note that medically extremely  vulnerable children will need a GP or Cconsultants' letter to confirm that they are eligible for vaccination 

Whilst Government guidance on the wearing of masks as protection against the spread of infection from Covid-19 in public places relaxes with effect from Thursday 27 January guidance for healthcare locations, including GP surgeries, remains exactly the same as before.

Therefore we would like to advise all visitors to the surgery that they will be required to wear a mask to gain access unless 'medically' exempt. If visitors have a particular problem with wearing a mask they may alternatively wear a visor.

Throughout the pandemic Guildhall Surgery has managed to maintain services at all times by keeping exposure to Covid-19 infection to an absolute minimum. Whilst we understand current Covid strains cause lessor illness they are more infectious and infection means our staff are off work and service to our patients is adversely affected. Therefore I am sure you will understand why our maintaining precautions is in all of our interests.

Do you need some advice, encouragement or help to be more active, improve your lifestyle or resolve problems affecting your health?

Guildhall Surgery no offers 'social prescribing, which means support around your non-medical needs. Involve is a local charity commisioned to provide this service and can help with:-

• Talking through worries, undersdtanding your needs and setting a plan
• Linking you to specialist services to help you with weight loss or fitness, tailored to you needs
• Specialist mental health worker for advice and support
• Support with feeling low, anxious or unmotivated
• Advice and guidance to tackle problems like housing, debt and unemployment
• Connecting you with others including local groups and socail networks

For further information please visit https://www.involvekent.org.uk/social-prescribing

To be referred to social prescribing you should speak with your Doctor

During December and into early January some of our clinical staff will be deployed to support the Covid booster effort at the express request the Government.

Due to reduced clinical capacity, we may ask patients to defer some routine or non-urgent requests until the New Year, or we may redirect you to other services. If you have a clinical concern which you think is urgent, or if you need to book a nurse appointment for ongoing clinical care, please speak to us however our decision will be final.

We would like to thank you in advance for your understanding.

The booster vaccination programme is now aiming to offer appointments to all adults aged 18 and over by 31 December 2021. Local vaccination teams are working to rapidly increase the availability of appointments.

The national booking system has opened for over 30s today and will open for 18-29-year-olds on Wednesday, 15 December. Some local vaccination services will also contact patients directly.
 
The time between your second dose and a booster must be at least three months.

You can book using the national booking service by calling 119 or at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-vaccination/book-coronavirus-vaccination/
 
The national booking service will only show clinics that have appointments available when you visit the site/call 119; but clinics regularly add more dates.

For a full list of all vaccination sites in Kent and Medway, visit https://www.kentandmedwayccg.nhs.uk/your-health/coronavirus/covid19vaccine

The booster vaccination programme is opening up to all adults aged 18 and over. Eligibility will be opened up based on age. For the latest detail on who is eligible, please check https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-vaccination/book-coronavirus-vaccination/
 
Please wait until you are contacted by the NHS or you see national publicity that your age range is now eligible. The time between your second dose and a booster must be at least three months. Please do not call the practice with general queries about Covid-19 vaccination.

Local teams are vaccinating as many people as quickly as possible, working through general practice, community pharmacies and other NHS teams.
 
You can book using the national booking service by calling 119 or at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-vaccination/book-coronavirus-vaccination/
 
The national booking service will only show clinics that have appointments available when you visit the site/call 119; but clinics regularly add more dates. For a full list of all vaccination sites in Kent and Medway, visit https://www.kentandmedwayccg.nhs.uk/your-health/coronavirus/covid19vaccine

The Folkestone Civic Centre Covid Vaccination Site is now closed and has moved to the FOLCA centre (the former Debenhams site).

Please can patients who have a booking from 23^rd October 21 onwards please go to the FOLCA centre.

With our PCN colleagues we are now delivering the Covid booster vaccinations at the Civic Centre in Folkestone (this will shortly change to the old Debenhams building) and Dover Health Centre in Dover. 

We would encourage all patients that have had their 1st and 2nd covid vaccinations to go ahead and get their booster vaccination as soon as they are eligible to do so. To be eligible for your booster vaccination you will be a minimum of 6 months since having had your 2nd covid vaccination at at that point you will receive a text message or letter from NHS England (not Guildhall Surgery) inviting you to book an appointment for your booster vaccination.

Please note : you cannot book your booster vaccination through us at the surgery.

To book your booster vaccination you should go online to the NHS national booking site (just put 'book my covid booster' into Google or any other search engine) which is simple to use and will give you all the options available. Alternatively call 119 where the NHS staff can make the booking on your behalf.

We are sorry to advise patients that there is a major network outage across South East England and we have no operational medical systems.

We are operating on fall back processes but this has limitations. 

We will do all we can to get back to normal as soon as the network resumes.

In the meantime thank you for your patience.

To help practices better meet the needs of patients who require care over the August Bank Holiday weekend our CCG have arranged that the online consultation system e-Consult will NOT be available from 18.30 on Friday 27 August 2021 until 08.00 Tuesday 31 August 2021.

If patients need urgent care, NHS 111 is there for you 24-hours-a-day. Pharmacists are experts in medicines and can help you with minor health concerns. You can find out opening hours of pharmacies near you on the NHS England website.

We are busy planning for this years flu vaccination season and at the appropriate time we shall be making contact with patients to inform them how to get their vacciantion this year. We will also be providing information through this website.

This year, Flu and COVID-19 viruses have the potential to increase pressures faced by the NHS this winter, particularly if infection waves from both viruses coincide. It is therefore important that you get vaccinated if you are eligible – this includes older people, pregnant women, and those with certain underlying health conditions.

As a temporary measure this year flu vaccinations will be extended to include those from years 7 to year 11 in secondary school and all those aged 50 and over. There will be more information to follow on this due course.

We are expecting a decision very soon on whether the flu vaccination and Covid booster jab can be given together, at the same time, and we will update you accordingly once that decision is know.

To ensure the continuing health and safety of our staff and patients we shall be following the very latest guidance from NHS England, as issued on 15 July as per the link below, which means that all current Covid protection measures in place at the surgery will continue without change including the mandatory wearing of face masks.

Infection rates have increased in recent weeks and whilst many have now been vaccinated the surgery is a place where people come when they are ill and potentially vulnerable. Our protection methods have worked well throughout the pandemic thus far and it is therefore sensible for those measures to continue.

We thank everyone for their continued support in this regard.

https://www.england.nhs.uk/2021/07/nhs-patients-staff-and-visitors-must-continue-to-wear-face-coverings-in-healthcare-settings/

Guidance has now been published on how to get your NHS COVID Pass letter and you should follow this link.

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/covid-pass/get-your-covid-pass-letter/?fbclid=IwAR38tHVlEGzypF6x2upySgUJe71lV7TZt4DbDmn2ZBqDNfDPqV294WjTVlA

We at the surgery are unable to issue COVID Pass letters as they might not be acceptable at your destination therefore we advise patients to allow sufficient time to follow this guidance ahead of their need.

Recent visitors to the surgery may well have met Jasper the Therapy Dog owned by our very own Dr Chris Udenze.

Jasper has the wonderful ability to help with patients who have anxiety problems and hs been getting rave reviews. As one patient recently wrote and said "thank for you for introducing us to your therapy dog - the amazing Jasper" and "my symptoms still persist however having some time with Jasper helps with my trauma and leadin a better life".

This is just one of many positive comments about what is an alternative way of helping patients and we're delighted to be doing something just a little different to help patients.

For more information about this visit NHS Digital

UPDATE 08/06/2021 - Data Extraction has been delayed until 1st September 2021

As of 1st September 2021 your data will be shared with NHS Digital to help improve health, care and services

Patient data from GP medical records kept by GP practices in England is used every day to improve health, care and services through planning and research, helping to find better treatments and improve patient care. The NHS is introducing an improved way to share this information - called the General Practice Data for Planning and Research data collection.

NHS Digital will collect, analyse, publish and share this patient data to improve health and care services for everyone. This includes:

• informing and developing health and social care policy
• planning and commissioning health and care services
• taking steps to protect public health (including managing and monitoring the coronavirus pandemic)
• in exceptional circumstances, providing you with individual care
• enabling healthcare and scientific research

Any data that NHS Digital collects will only be used for health and care purposes. It is never shared with marketing or insurance companies.

NHS Digital will not collect any patient data for patients who have already registered a Type 1 Opt-out in line with current policy. If this changes patients who have registered a Type 1 Opt-out will be informed.

If you do not want your patient data shared with NHS Digital, you can register a Type 1 Opt-out with us. You can register a Type 1 Opt-out at any time. You can also change your mind at any time and withdraw a Type 1 Opt-out.

Data sharing with NHS Digital will start on 1st September 2021 *updated 08/06/2021

If you have already registered a Type 1 Opt-out with your GP practice your data will not be shared with NHS Digital.

If you wish to register a Type 1 Opt-out with your GP practice before data sharing starts with NHS Digital, this should be done by returning this form to us as soon as possible, by *1st August 2021 to allow time for processing it. If you have previously registered a Type 1 Opt-out and you would like to withdraw this, you can also use the form to do this. You can send the form by post to us or by email to kmccg.guildhall.surgery@nhs.net  

If you register a Type 1 Opt-out after your patient data has already been shared with NHS Digital, no more of your data will be shared with NHS Digital. NHS Digital will however still hold the patient data which was shared with us before you registered the Type 1 Opt-out.

If you do not want NHS Digital to share your identifiable patient data with anyone else for purposes beyond your own care, then you can also register a National Data Opt-out (also known as Type 2 Opt out). 

What do you need to do?

If you are happy for your data to be shared as above, and haven't previously Opt'd out - you do not need to do anything.

Type 1 OPT-OUT - to stop sharing your details with NHS digital (or to opt back in, if you have previous opt'd out) 

Complete this form OPT OUT FORM (or you can also complete this to opt back in). 

Then, either;

• Hand the form into reception
• post it to us to: Guildhall Surgery, 65-69 Guildhall Street, Folkestone, Kent. CT20 1EJ
• Email it to us at kmccg.guildhall.surgery@nhs.net

Type 2 OPT-OUT (Also known as National Data Opt-out) - If you do not want NHS Digital to share your patient data with anyone else for purposes beyond your own care, which has been already shared with them (or to opt back in, if you have previous opt'd out)

NOTE: You can only do this via the following ways - as a GP practice we cannot opt you out of Type 2 (National Data Opt-out) 

You need to, either;

• Call 0300 303 5678
• or, complete the online form via YOUR NHS MATTERS

At a time when there is a lot of media coverage to the effect that GP's aren't very busy we thought the figures in this graphic would be interesting.

Here at Guildhall Surgery we may be operating to the telephone triage system but this doesn't mean less appointments - in fact the opposite is true. We are, and have alway been, seeing patients for face-to-face appointments where necessary and overall this startegy allows us to maximise the numbers of patients we can look after.

Please note that any patient who has had their 1st Covid vaccination can now have their 2nd vaccination at 8 weeks instead of the original 12 weeks.

Invitation text messages for patients to make their appointments at the Civic Centre will be sent out but alternatively the surgery team will make a booking for you if you call us. Because the phones are currently so busy we would ask that calls regarding Covid vaccinations are made during the afternoons.

We have noted the many comments in the media today after the statement by NHS England in relation to face-to-face appointments with GP's and, contrary to some of those comments, GP's, including those here at Guildhall Surgery, have continued seeing patients face-to-face throughout the pandemic in line with government and public health guidance.

Our first priority is the safety of patients and staff as we have many vulnerable patients and Covid 19 is still present. The limitations of our premises, with a very small waiting room and reception area, means we will still need to limit the number of patients in the building at one time to acheive social distancing. With this in mind, we will continue to triage patients as we have been doing very successfuly throughout the pandemic thus far but always ensuring the possibility of a well organised face-to-face appointment exists where deemed necessary for patient care.

It is already a fact that the current level of face-to-face appointments results in patients having to wait outside the surgery from time to time to ensure that we acheive Covid safety within the surgery and a return to wholesale face-to-face appointments would increase Covid infection risks exponentially. Further we are actually carrying out more consultations through current precedures that we were before the pandemic.

Please be assured that our patients interests are always at the forefront of practice policies.

For information on how you can demonstrate your COVID-19 vaccination status when travelling abroad please follow this link to the Government website with all the informarion.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/demonstrating-your-covid-19-vaccination-status-when-travelling-abroad?fbclid=IwAR1QeWFVhh-5Ct1ZiqdMx_qxgc7qpLHMsWcuy0dPSgyhWNXw5fMcchlVJhs

The information you require is not available from us at the practice but will be avilable from 17 May on your smartphone using the NHS App or if you do not have a smartphone you should contact the NHS on 119 for further assistance.