CORONAVIRUS - APPOINTMENT UPDATE

GP Practices are potentially high risk locations for a Coronavirus infection. The latest Government advice is to wear face coverings in enclosed public spaces: face coverings may be beneficial where it is hard to follow social distancing measures and you are more likely to come into contact with people who you do not normally meet.  With immediate effect we are asking ALL patients attending the surgery to wear a face covering to help us protect each other and reduce the spread of the disease.  We appreciate your co-operation.  Click here for a guide on how to wear a face covering

To maintain social distancing in the practice, please do NOT arrive any earlier than five minutes before your appointment.  If you are early you may be asked to return closer to your appointment time.

If you have symptoms of COVID-19 please do NOT attend your appointment. 

ALL requests for appointments will be booked as a telephone call. A clinician will call you back and if deemed clinically necessary will book you a video consultation or face to face appointment at the surgery in the next 3 days.
 
WE ADVISE ALL PATIENTS NOT TO ATTEND THE SURGERY UNLESS YOU HAVE A FACE TO FACE APPOINTMENT - FOR ALL OTHER QUERIES PLEASE TELEPHONE THE SURGERY.

Appointments

FOR APPOINTMENTS WITHIN THE NEXT 3 DAYS

If you think your need an appointment within the next 3 days please register or sign in to DoctorLink using the following link

https://app.doctorlink.com/Newcourt/register 

Registration is simple and only takes a few minutes. After answering a number of questions to help identify your problem if you need an appointment you will be able to directly book this online without having to call the practice. All the information you have provided will automatically be transferred to your record and available for the clinician who will see you.

For routine appointments see below:

Access the online appointment system

You can also make an appointment by telephoning us on 01793 852302.  It helps us to allocate appointments if you can say if it is urgent for the same day or not.  We would encourage you to consult the same doctor whenever possible, as this helps us to give you better care and helps us to get to know you better.

Practice Nurses

In a number of cases it might be worth considering an appointment with a practice nurse rather than a doctor. Practice nurses are qualified to deal with many conditions and you may be seen more quickly.

Cancellations

If you cannot attend an appointment for any reason please inform us as soon as possible in order for us to give the slot to someone else.

Improved Access - Evening and Weekend Appointments Available Now
You can now access additional Primary Care Services in the evenings and at weekends.

Improved Access is a Wiltshire-wide initiative where local practices are working together to offer increased availability of services and appointments in the evenings and the weekend. These appointments are available 18:30-20:00 Monday-Friday, and Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays.   This collaboration  by  practices  will ensure all patients in Wiltshire  have this option, but this might mean you will be offered an appointment at another practice.

Appointment types will vary - some being face-to-face, some on the phone - and there will be a mixture of bookable and same-day appointments available across the week. We will be offering  appointments with GPs as well as with other healthcare professionals, such as a Practice Nurse or Health Care Assistant . We are keen to balance the importance of continuity of care with convenient access for patients, while ensuring that the service is safe.

To book such an appointment, contact your local Surgery during normal opening times. A receptionist will explain the process, and ensure the booking is appropriate. You will need to give consent to use this service.

For more information, please contact your usual GP surgery.

Home Visits

Whilst we encourage our patients to come to the surgery, where we have the proper equipment and facilities available, we do appreciate this is not always possible. In this respect, if you do need a home visit, you can help us by calling reception before 10:00.

You may only request a home visit if you are housebound or are too ill to visit the practice. Your GP will only visit you at home if they think that your medical condition requires it and will also decide how urgently a visit is needed. Please bear this in mind and be prepared to provide suitable details to enable the doctor to schedule house calls

You can also be visited at home by a community nurse if you are referred by your GP. You should also be visited at home by a health visitor if you have recently had a baby or if you are newly registered with a GP and have a child under five years.

Sickness Certificates

You do not require a doctor's sickness certificate for any illness lasting seven days or less. Your employer may however require you to complete a self-certification form (SC2) which is available from your employer or on www.gov.uk.

Evidence you are sick

If you are sick for more than seven days, your employer can ask you to give them some form of medical evidence to support payment of SSP (statutory sick pay).

It is up to your employer to decide whether you are incapable of work. A medical certificate, now called a 'Statement of Fitness for Work’ (see below) from your doctor is strong evidence that you are sick and would normally be accepted, unless there is evidence to prove otherwise.

You could also provide evidence from someone who is not a medical practitioner, e.g. a dentist. Your employer will decide whether or not this evidence is acceptable. If your employer has any doubts, they may still ask for a medical certificate from your GP.

Statement of Fitness for Work - ’Fit Note'

The 'fit note' was introduced on 6 April 2010. With your employer's support, the note will help you return to work sooner by providing more information about the effects of your illness or injury.

For more information see the www.gov.uk (where this information was sourced)

Training Practice

We take part in the final training of experienced doctors (GP Registrars) before they work in independent family practices, and also the occasional training of medical students.  Each training doctor usually works here for one year. 

At some surgery sessions one doctor observes the consultations of another, or a medical student may sit in.  We will warn you if this is likely to be the case, and hope that you will understand; however, if you wish to see the consulting doctor alone, please let the receptionist know.

Occasionally one of our own doctors or our registrar will ask if they can video a consultation so that they can use this to help them improve what they do.  We would always ask for your written consent and if you really do not want this to happen there will be no pressure.