Wyndham House Surgery

If you are eligible for a free flu vaccination you can now book into our flu clinics held at Silverton Community Hall all day on Friday 23rd October and the morning of Tuesday 3rd November . You can relax after your flu jab with a cup of tea or coffee, and maybe a biscuit, and then browse the stalls around the hall.

On the 14^th September the surgery will take part in the Big Devon Bake Off by having a Cake Sale to raise money for Hospiscare.

All contributions welcome – donations of cakes or money will be taken on Monday!

For years and years NHS leaders have dreamt of having a single computer system accessible by all staff that would allow doctors to get clinical details about any patient, anywhere in the country, at anytime of day. A comprehensive patient note system would reduce bureaucracy and duplication, plus enhance safety and speed of treatment. It would solve one of the most frustrating aspects of the NHS: its tortoise-like pace of transferring information internally.

The confidentiality of a doctor-patient relationship is extremely important. However, schemes that aspire to this NHS IT nirvana will inevitably threaten this. The Government care.data scheme last year was guilty of this; it proposed uploading all patient information to a central computer database and selling this on to Research bodies, Universities or possibly Private Companies. This was an ‘opt out’ scheme and many people understandably opted out as soon as they understood the proposal. Care.data was withdrawn due to the Government being unable to answer a multitude of ethical and practical questions. Undeterred the enthusiasts changed tack and aimed at a more realistic target and this time they have potentially hit it.

This new proposal is called the Medical Interoperability Gateway (MIG). If a GP Practice in Devon opts into this system it will be allowing doctors in designated places (eg. local hospitals, Devon Doctors on Call) to enter their Practice computer system. If the patient gives permission an Out of Hours Doctor will be able to look at their GP notes. It is the equivalent of a Bank giving its Secure Vault Access Code to some trusted colleagues to help customers when the Bank is shut. The colleagues can enter the Vault but only open the customer’s individual safety deposit box when the customer is standing beside them.

The MIG has safeguards that protect patient confidentiality whilst also enabling patients to consent to sharing of their notes when they wish. The process is two way: the notes a doctor makes in A&E on a Sunday night will be viewed immediately by their GP on Monday morning. Speed, efficiency, safety and confidentiality. It is working well in other parts of the country and is being rolled out in Devon this summer. Wyndham House plans to opt into this scheme.

It is important to reiterate that a doctor can only access your notes via the MIG if you give formal consent at the time you are with them. You have a key to your notes, they have a key but both are needed at the same time. However if you prefer that your notes are not in the accessible ‘vault’ please let us know and we will ensure they are labeled as such.

Our lead dispenser Claire Venn recently won a national competition run by Dispex and won the surgery a state-of-the-art Pill Poppitt (worth over £300), which automatically removes pills from their packets. This is an invaluable tool in dispensary where we now have over 30 people using our Dossett Box service, where pills are dispensed into blue boxes and delivered weekly to people who find it difficult to organise their own medication. If you would like to know more about this service please ask your GP or at dispensary.

You can now to collect dispensed prescriptions all day long, without a break for lunch. The new hours mean that the dispensing facility is available to patients for the full working day, improving access to the service. Please come to the reception window to collect a prescription if you come during the hours of 12pm and 2:30pm.

Please note that due to staff lunch breaks there may not be a dispenser available to discuss your medication between the hours of 1-2pm. But please ask the receptionist, as some are also trained dispensers.

Three members of staff recently attended a course designed to train people to feel confident about what to do in the event of a fire. Activities included learning about fire awareness and how to evacuate a building, and also how to use fire extinguishers in action – fighting a real (controlled) fire with various types of extinguisher. You’ll be pleased to know that all attendees passed with flying colours, so will know how to keep patients and staff safe if a fire ever occurs at Wyndham House Surgery. Look at the sign in Reception to know who your Fire

If you hear the Fire Alarm (and haven’t been warned that it is being tested) please evacuate the building calmly through the signposted Fire Exits. We do carry out drills twice a year so you may be taking part in an important part of our fire training, or it could be a real fire.

Younger patients at Wyndham House Surgery are well served by our local Health Visitor – Lynette Hawes. Please contact her for any advice or information concerning children. She has suggested some local activities for younger children:

• The Carousel Project: http://www.thecarouselproject.org.uk/ is a locally run social enterprise, based in Stoke Canon, aiming to create fun activities for pre-school children.
• Silverton Preschool: http://www.silvertonpreschool.co.uk/ is the preschool covering Silverton and Rewe. They also run a toddler group on Friday mornings in Silverton.
• Stoke Canon Preschool: http://www.stokecanon.net/pre-school/ is the preschool covering Stoke Canon.
• Exeter, East and Mid Devon Surestart Children’s Centres: Please follow the links to Children’s Centres Timetables to find out all activities. http://www.surestartexeter.org.uk/; http://www.actionforchildren.org.uk/in-your-area/services/childrens-centres/crediton-childrens-centre/ ; http://www.surestarteastdevon.org.uk/ Children’s Centres are there to help local families with under fives by providing information; advice and services; help with returning to work; finding childcare; family support; family health; and much more.
• A Stay and Play session is now available at Beacon Heath on Monday, 9.15 – 11.15am, offering all the favourite activities – baby area, creative, small world, etc.  Access will be through the front door of Beacon Heath Children’s Centre, staff will then be available to guide you through to the session.  Clinic will be running alongside as normal and Baby Oasis will also be happening, for breastfeeding support.
• DISC – Devon Information Services for Children: http://www.devon.gov.uk/disc_services webpages to look for any children’s activities from Day care to Ballet and Scouts.

The new list of walks for the Silverton Walk and Talk Group is out. You can find it here: Silverton Walk and Talk List April Spetmeber 2015