PARKGATE MEDICAL CENTRE
WINTER 2015/2016
PATIENT NEWSLETTER
The doctors and staff of Parkgate Medical Centre would like to wish all of our
patients a very happy and healthy New Year.
FLU VACCINATION CLINICS 2015/16
Don’t be caught out by flu this winter. If you have not already had a flu vaccination and are
aged 65 years and over, or if you are under 65 but suffer from Coronary Heart Disease,
Diabetes, COPD, Asthma, Stroke, Cancer or any other chronic disease; you are entitled to
receive a FREE vaccination at either of our surgeries.
If you have any questions regarding your entitlement to this, or if you wish to make an
appointment to receive your vaccination, then please contact either of our surgeries on
01709 514501 (Parkgate), or 01709 529875 (Thorogate).
Please note that Carers are also eligible for the FREE vaccination.
STAFF NEWS
Our new Practice Nurse, Caroline Chadburn started with us in mid-October 2015 and is
settling in well within our Practice team.
We are also pleased to welcome our new Foundation GP, Dr Alex Bradwell, who joined the
Practice on 4th December 2015.
As part of our ongoing commitment towards the training of new medical staff, In January
2016, we will have a new 3A Medical Student, James Whitehead, who will be joining us on
Tuesday 5th for a seven week placement. Similarly a new 3B student, Rosanna Littleproud
will join us on 18th January. James will be based at the Parkgate surgery and Rosanna will be
based predominantly at Thorogate.
We have recently advertised for two reception posts. Interviews will take place on Friday
22nd January.
DOCTORS’ APPOINTMENTS
Please bear in mind that only Dr Barmade works full time and that the other partners all
work part-time, so this must be taken into consideration if you prefer to see a particular GP.
As we always try to make clear to patients, you may have to be prepared to wait a little
longer than usual if you want to see a particular doctor.
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Similarly please be aware this wait can be extended due to the nature of the respective
doctor’s working pattern and, of course, their annual holidays:
Doctor
Usual days of working
Dr Barmade (Full-time):
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday
Dr Thomas (Part-time):
Tuesday, Wednesday
Dr Iqbal (Part-time):
Monday (am), Tuesday (am), Wednesday
Dr Ravi (Part-time):
Monday, Thursday, Friday (am)
Dr Mariadassou (Part-time): Wednesday, Thursday (am), Friday
ONLINE APPOINTMENT MAKING, PRESCRIPTION ORDERING AND VIEWING
OF SUMMARY CARE RECORDS
The Practice now allows patients to book GP appointments online. It is also possible to order
your repeat prescription medication in this way and to view your summary care record
online (i.e. acute and repeat medications, allergies, etc). To use these facilities it is necessary
for patients to obtain access. To do this please telephone or ask at Reception.
PATIENT PARTICIPATION GROUP
We would be pleased to hear from any of our patients who are interested in joining our
patient participation group. Meetings are held every two months at the Parkgate surgery
and the next one will take place in February.
We also welcome patients who are unable to, or would perhaps prefer not to attend
meetings, to connect with us via e-mail.
If this sounds of interest to you, please don’t wait for a further invitation, just come along
and find out more. Alternatively, if you would like more information before deciding if this is
for you, please ask to speak to our Practice Manager, Trevor Ledger, or e-mail him at:
t.ledger@nhs.net
SHOCKING STATISTICS!
Like many other Practices across the UK, we still continue to experience a high number of
instances of patients who fail to turn up for their appointments. This causes a significant
waste of valuable doctors’ or nurses’ time and prevents people who could have been
offered those appointments the chance of being seen quickly.
Here are the figures for ‘missed appointments during the past three months:
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Month
October 2015
November 2015
December 2015
Doctors’ Appointments not kept by
patients
Number
Time
92
22 hours
98
22.5 hours
73
15.75 hours
Nurses’ / HCA’s Appointments not
kept by patients
Number
Time
77
18.6 hours
93
26.6 hours
83
28.4 hours
These appalling figures could be dramatically reduced if people would only contact us in
advance to cancel appointments that they have made, but no longer require.
However, we still always ask you to consider the following question: Have you ever
wondered why it can be so difficult to get an appointment?
COMMENTS AND COMPLIMENTS
We value feedback from all patients who use our service and would be grateful if you could
please fill out a Friends and Family Test form when you have visited a doctor or nurse. You
are not required to write your name on the forms and they only take a couple of minutes to
fill in. Please ask at Reception for more details.
We would also like to thank those many patients who have taken the time and trouble to
provide what, on the whole, has been such positive and wonderful feedback about our
doctors and staff. We really do appreciate this and it makes what we do more worthwhile.
PHARMACY FIRST SCHEME FOR MINOR AILMENTS
Did you know that it is not always necessary to see a doctor or Practice nurse in the first
instance for a variety of minor ailments? The above scheme is available without charge and
can be used as a first line choice, which is hugely beneficial, particularly when it can be so
difficult to get an appointment at the doctor’s – particularly at this time of year..
Many pharmacies now offer help and advice on the following common conditions:
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Allergic conjunctivitis
Allergic rhinitis
Constipation
Diarrhoea
Threadworm
Vaginal and vulval infections
Infantile colic
Fever in children
 Head lice
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Common warts and verrucae
Acute coughs
Cold and influenza symptoms
Sore throats
Infective conjunctivitis
Scabies