Patient News for August 2024

How we did last month

By now, you'll know our GPs don't just do appointments, although last month, they got through a fair few between them as usual.

Almost 3,000 appointments were offered with 85 per cent of those being face-to-face. The rest were either by phone, video, home visits or care home rounds.
The practice ordered more than 4,500 tests, including QFit tests, blood tests, and smear tests, to support vital health screening and diagnosis.
The team issued around 9,300 repeat medications, with an estimated cost to the NHS of more than £106,000. A very important reason it's best not to stockpile medications and only order what you need, when you need it.
And over 350 outbound referrals were made to specialist, hospital, and community services.

Staff updates in August:

Dr Nevaykha Sivakumaran, a specialty GP trainee in her final year of training, will join us from next week, for one year.

We're also looking forward to welcoming Cambridge medical students Sebastian Baynes and Shriya Vishwanathan, plus John Davey from Imperial College, who will all be on placement with us later this month.

As always, you'll be informed at the time of booking if your appointment is with a medical student and it's your choice whether you choose to see them or not. The Hall Practice has a long history of successfully training the next generation of GPs.

All our medical students are overseen and supervised by one of our GPs at all times.

We are now a Gambling Harms accredited practice

Did you know that an estimated 340,000 people have a gambling disorder in the UK but only 3% are receiving treatment? Another two million people in the UK experience some harm from gambling or are at risk of developing a gambling disorder.

Raising awareness of gambling harms among healthcare professionals is crucial for identifying and guiding patients towards support and treatment services. Dr Turner has recently completed her RCGP-accredited training in this field and cascaded these new skills across our team.

If you or a loved one is affected by gambling, know that you'll be listened to and supported at The Hall Practice to get help.

Our contraception service is expanding

Our coil clinic has been a vital resource for many of you, providing expert care and convenient access to coil fittings and removals right here in the community.

Starting soon, we'll not only have a monthly coil clinic but a contraception implant clinic too. We're very excited about this latest development as it makes us the only surgery in the area to offer these comprehensive services all under one roof.

If you have any questions about these services or need more information, please contact us via our website or call us.

Low blood stocks

The NHS is appealing for people with O-type blood to urgently come forward and donate. Blood stocks have dropped to "unprecedently low" levels in England.

O negative blood - known as the universal blood type - is safe for all patients. It is used in emergencies or when a patient's blood type is unknown.

Most people only tend to find out their blood type when they donate blood or if they have a condition where the blood type needs to be known as part of treatment. Whether you're an existing donor or you're planning to donate for the first time, you can find your nearest donation point here.

Upcoming vaccinations available

From 01 September, we’ll have the new national RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) vaccination available to pregnant women (from 28 weeks) and older adults (who are already 75 to 79 years old on 1 September 2024 or turn 75 years of age on or after 1 September 2024).

RSV is responsible for many of the respiratory infections that put people in hospital each winter so it's great to see this protection being available for the first time.

Those eligible will be contacted to book an appointment later this month.

The flu and COVID vaccines this year will start in October and all eligible patients will be contacted to book their appointments in September.

Meet Dr Hazel Dent

GP at The Hall Practice since 2022

After completing my GP training in Sussex in 2020, I relocated to Buckinghamshire. I started locum work at The Hall Practice in 2022 and officially joined later that year, so my two-year anniversary is approaching. I feel lucky to have settled in and built relationships with both my colleagues and many of the patients.

I find all aspects of patient care in general practice fulfilling, I have a background in emergency and remote medicine as well as elderly care, but the variety and continuity of primary care attracted me to the role. I have a particular interest in dermatology, recently earning a distinction in my postgraduate diploma in clinical dermatology and I enjoy applying this expertise to my cases. Additionally, I run the minor surgery clinics at the practice with the assistance of Victoria.

My usual workdays are Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. When I'm not in work, you'll find me enjoying local walks, heading to the gym, or spending time with friends and family.

Meet Kalpna Merchant

Senior Clinical Pharmacist since 2018

I started my pharmacy career as a pharmacist manager for Lloyds Pharmacy in the West Midlands. From there, I transferred to Lloyds in Beaconsfield and started my postgraduate diploma in pharmacy practice at Kings College, London.

After completing 2-year pharmacists in GP practice course, I went on to do my independent prescribing course in 2018. Throughout this time, I worked as a virtual ward pharmacist, care homes pharmacist and a medicines optimisation pharmacist in numerous GP practices in London and Buckinghamshire.

I finally landed at The Hall practice in the summer of 2018 and I'm so proud to be the senior pharmacist here. My main role is to support patients holistically with managing their long-term conditions.

Outside of work, I enjoy fitness classes; my favourites are circuit training and Body Combat. I also love to travel and learn about other cultures, especially the food!

A word on BMA action in the news

You may have seen recent news reports about GP contracts, underfunding and appointment availability being reduced in the media last week. We understand that this may cause concern to our patients. We sent out an immediate reply to our patients by text and on our website on Friday 02 August. However, in case you missed it .....

We want to reassure you that we are committed to maintaining our current appointment capacity. Our priority is to continue providing high-quality healthcare to all our patients.

You can continue to access our services in the same way as you always have. We prioritise your health and wellbeing and will always do our best to meet your needs.

We do support the BMA’s concerns about the funding of general practice. The BMA, which represents doctors, has highlighted that GP surgeries have been underfunded for many years. This has led to challenges in hiring staff, buying necessary equipment, and providing the level of care we would like to. Despite these difficulties, we are committed to providing you with the best possible care.

We want to reiterate that we will not be reducing any appointment capacity at the practice.

Thank you for your continued trust and support.