Musculoskeletal aches and pains are common, often related to injuries and in older patients made worse by wear and tear age related joint problems.  However no matter the cause or the other associated problems the vast majority of them will respond to physiotherapy.  Follow these links for good advice on exercises that will help hip, shoulder and knee problems.

You are eligible to receive a free flu jab if you:

• are 65 years of age or over
• are pregnant
• have certain medical conditions
• are living in a long-stay residential care home or other long-stay care facility
• receive a carer’s allowance, or you are the main carer for an elderly or disabled person whose welfare may be at risk if you fall ill

Front-line health and social care workers are also eligible to receive the flu vaccine.

More information available here

Small steps to a healthier life – Parish Magazine article Nov 2017

Losing weight is one of the hardest challenges humans can set themselves. This is because our very basic hard wiring is working against us in these situations. The extremely strong internal mechanisms we have developed over thousands of years in order to survive in a harsh world now operate to inhibit our attempts to help ourselves in a provision rich environment. Humans evolved in small groups with the aim of scavenging for food. It was not plentiful and when you can only manage to eat one or two substantial meals a week it makes sense to store some of the calories you ingest. Homo-sapiens developed a very efficient high calorie storage system: fat. This could be deposited around the body and then utilized when required to provide the energy needed for long treks across the savannah. Food was less complex; as nowadays we needed a balanced diet however most components came from separate sources. Feel good hormones were released to reward and so motivate Stone Age humans to seek out each component. Even though combination of sugars and fats are now easily picked from the supermarket shelf the internal neurological buzz from eating them persists.

However it is the history and physiology of our evolutionary development that gives us the key as to how to best tackle the challenge of lowering our weight and keeping it there. Slow burn of calories by walking, like our ancestors had to do to survive, is the best way of burning off fat. Working in small groups to support one another was also a major survival tool from long ago and this is why motivation from weight loss teams is so powerful.

Recently Devon County Council have set up a central service to help patients lose weight under one umbrella organization called One Small Step. This can be accessed directly on line at www.onesmallstep.org.uk or via the telephone on 01392 908139. Monday morning Keep Fit classes in the Silverton Community Hall are another option available to patients as they combine these important factors; group support and regular low grade burning of calories.

I regularly see patients who have recently lost significant weight. Congratulations are always in order as I know the effort immense effort required to achieve it. Evidence shows that GPs nagging our patients is not effective. It is much more powerful for us to keep gently nudging patients towards helpful groups and activities. So hence this article, another gentle push to start the first step towards walking that little bit more every day. Small steps when added together will produce a worthwhile journey.

Anthony O’Brien (GP, Wyndham House Surgery) Nov 2017

Trench welfare – Parish Magazine article Dec 2017

My son has just come back from a school visit to the First World War battlefields in Belgium. He learnt about what happened on the first Christmas Day when British and German soldiers along many parts of the battle line left their positions and entered No-mans land together. They played football, shared drinks and socialized. Following this remarkable event unfortunately they then returned to their trenches and recommenced the fighting.

Despite the disappointing ending, the story is a mark of the power and opportunities that Christmas brings. It is a time when we can all reach out, change engrained behaviours, look to foster new friendships and/or patch up older relationships where required. There is now a lot of evidence about the enormous health benefits of using coordinated social networks in communities. The knowledge that someone is there and can be approached if needed is very powerful. Our Bertie delivery service is a great link between the surgery and our less mobile patients. As well as delivering medication it also offers that regular contact, a reference point in a patient’s week when they know someone will be knocking on their door – it can be more therapeutic than the actual medication being delivered. The same can be said of good neighbours and strong communities. Knowing that help is only a knock on the door or a quick phone call away relieves a lot of otherwise very understandable anxiety for the vulnerable, the elderly and those living on their own. Often we think we know who these people might be however that is not always the case.

Social events at Christmas give us all the chance to get out of any trenches we might have found ourselves in and hopefully give a leg up to others who find it more difficult to get up and out. The Friends of Wyndham House coordinate a group of volunteers to help reach out to anyone who might benefit from a hand to reintroduce themselves into the community. We are very fortunate in having many social activities on offer in our villages from walking & talking though to knitting and quilting. If during the festive season you think that yourself, a friend or someone you reconnect with might benefit from some help to link them back into some regular social contacts then please contact the Friends via the surgery so we can pass on the details to the coordinator.

Wyndham House wishes everyone a happy, peaceful and sociable Christmas.

Anthony O’Brien, GP Wyndham House Surgery Dec 2017

The dispensary and reception areas have had a total refit, which not only merges the two areas together for more efficient working and more clinical space, but also means that we now have more storage and a new modern appearance. Not only that, but by merging the reception and dispensary together it means that we now have an extra consulting room in the surgery. We thank you for your patience and understanding during the transitional time and hope that you like our new layout. Future plans for the surgery include new, energy efficient lighting for the waiting area and automatic doors into the surgery.

Over the weekend the community of Silverton raised £705.41 to go towards the Link Up Service. The fundraising morning included a plant sale, raffle, cake sale, and a tea/coffee morning. The morning was a great success and we would like to thank everybody who contributed to and supported the event; with special thanks to Doreen, Len and their son Adrian, without them the morning would not have happened.

The Link-Up service are always on the lookout for new recruits; if you are interested in becoming a volunteer driver or finding out more information please see the following poster and contact the Link Up Co-ordinator Roger Higman on 01392 860571.

Please find a copy of our 2017 patient survey here. We greatly appreciate any feedback about the surgery and thank you for taking the time to fill in the survey. Please hand in the completed survey to Reception.

Reports in the press of three week waits to see your GP are like stories from another country for us in Silverton. Appreciative patients regularly ask me how we manage to offer the service we do, with appointments always available on the day or within the next few days depending on patient preferences. The truth is our approach has hardly altered over the last 30 years.

We have always made access for patients one of our top priorities. We think that this creates a positive and facilitatory healthcare circle rather than a vicious downward spiral. We ensure we always have some available GP appointments at the beginning of every day and as a result we know that we will, literally, have room to adapt to whatever that day brings. Helen, our senior receptionist, brings many years of knowledge of how to balance our appointments so that we have enough both short and long term available when patients ring.  We think that if patients are confident that they can get an appointment when they need one they are more likely to wait to see if their symptoms start to improve before booking one. Continuity of care is also vitally important. Seeing your own GP means patients are less likely to return quickly hence needing less appointments.

We run a one stop shop. GPs and nurses all take blood tests themselves which is highly unusual. Normally if a GP requests a test then patients have to make another appointment for a phlebotomist to take their blood. Doing everything in the same consultation, although slightly longer, makes the whole process of presentation to diagnosis much quicker.  It also saves appointments. As we are rural we dispense medication ensuring the smooth flow from diagnosis to collection of treatment. Through this additional contact we also get to know patients better and this enhances our whole holistic approach to healthcare that we think is essential to the service we can provide.

Ultimately the most important components are the people involved. It is a whole team effort that starts as soon as a patient enters the surgery or we answer the telephone with everyone working very hard to make ourselves accessible and efficient.

The other part of this healthcare team is you, the patients. Understanding and respecting a valued service works both ways. Our patients are always happy to wait or adjust if one of the GPs is called out on an emergency and happy to adapt their timetables to fit with ours if we are busy on a particular day.  So whilst patients do praise the service regularly, we also need to thank you for using it so responsibly. This completes yet another positive feedback loop that makes it all possible.

Anthony O’Brien, Wyndham House Surgery

To read the updated SCENE Newsletter for 2017, please click here.

Age UK Tiverton, Cullompton and Mid Devon

www.ageuk.org.uk

The Haven Centre, Broad Lane, Tiverton. EX16 5HE

Contact: 01884 255369 for details of all Age UK services

Or email: enquiries@ageukmiddevon.org.uk

Mon – Fri 9.30 – 12 noon and Tues – Thurs 9.30-3pm

 Information and Advice

We offer a ‘one stop shop’ for information and advice on issues that are concerning you, or problems you are facing. We provide you with easy access to information and support you in understanding the options, helping you make informed decisions. Subjects we can advise on include Health and Social Care, Allowances and Benefits, Money Matters and Local services and support

Tiverton Hub at Tiverton Town Hall

Tuesday 9:30-12:30; Wednesday 9:30-12:30

Cullompton Hub at Culm Valley Centre for Health

Thursday 9:30 -12:30

Call 01884 242052 to make an appointment with an advisor.

Toenail Cutting service

This affordable foot care and toenail cutting service provides support and basic foot health advice to older people who cannot care for their own feet. It aims to improve older people’s mobility by providing simple prevention and support for people who can’t cut their nails themselves. This service takes place monthly at Culm Valley Centre for Health and Tiverton Hospital.

Toenail cutting £6.50 and fingernail £3.00.

Phone Ali on: 01884 255369 to book.

Computer and IT Support

IT may be everywhere, but that doesn’t mean everyone understands it. If you or a loved one could do with a bit of help and guidance using computers, tablets and Smartphones these sessions designed for the over 50s could be for you.

We have an IT suite, with a small network of computers open for taster sessions supervised by our IT expert. Some areas of interest to you may be: online shopping, family tree research, using smartphones, booking holidays, or using comparison web-sites. We also offer up to six lessons in a convenient location, covering computer basics. Cost is £5.00 for 50 minutes. Call Ben on 01884 255369 for more information.

Free legal and financial advice clinics

Volunteers from local professional firms offer free half-hour consultation sessions on specific legal and financial matters. Attendance is strictly by appointment only. To find out more and to book your free session, please call the office on 01884 242052, or email us at enquiries@ageukmiddevon.org.uk.

The Haven Centre (Day Care)

Open Wednesday, Thursday and Friday between 9am and 3pm. Activities, entertainment, singing and a freshly cooked two-course lunch. More information on Age UK website or contact Simone or Lizzie on: 01884 251213.

Men in Sheds

Due to start in early 2018 – contact Age UK for details. Men’s Sheds are community spaces for men to connect, converse and create. The activities are often similar to those of garden sheds, but for groups of men to enjoy together. They help reduce loneliness and isolation, but most importantly, they’re fun.

The Friends of Wyndham House Surgery

WE NEED YOU!

PLEASE REGISTER YOUR INTEREST AND BE A MEMBER OF THE FRIENDS OF WYNDHAM HOUSE SURGERY.

If you are a patient with the Wyndham House Surgery – or if you have a keen interest in furthering the welfare and health of the local community – then you can be a Member of the charity, the Friends of Wyndham House Surgery. The charity is run by a Management Committee of up to nine Trustees and are elected by the members at the AGM.

It costs nothing to be a Member but by registering you will be helping the Friends, will be supporting the work of The Friends’ Management Committee and would be part of the group that elects the Committee each year.

In the past it hasn’t been necessary for us to have a ‘register’ of members but Charity Committee Rules and Guidance make this really important for us. Therefore, if you care about our work, please complete an application form and become a Registered Member of the Friends.

You are still very welcome to come along to our AGMs even if you don’t want to register as a member but after this year’s AGM only registered members will be able to vote for the Management Committee or vote on other significant matters – such as our revised constitution.

If you came to the AGM last year, you may recall that we felt the time had come to review the constitution. This important document provides the main stay for the governance of the charity and the original constitution adopted in 1992 was a bit out of line with 2016 Charity Commission regulations and guidance.  The draft document will be available on the Wyndham House Surgery website, or you can request an email copy by sending an email to friendsofwyndhamhousesurgery@gmail.com or if you do not have internet access please speak to any of the Committee Members.

Membership application forms can found here or are obtainable from Reception at Wyndham House Surgery.