News 2009 Newyddion 2009 - ARCHIVE
999 - When To Call? (19/12/09)
Call 999 for:
**Road Traffic Accidents
**Sudden chest pain suggestive of a heart attack
**Chest pain in somebody with known angina, not relieved
by GTN spray
**Suspected Meningitis
**Acute difficulty breathing
**Severe bleeding
**Collapse and unconsciousness
**Severe allergy/anaphylaxis, affecting airway and breathing
**Stroke
A poster has been produced to give advice on when to call 999.
Click on the image above or view here in pdf format
Festive Season Opening Times (16/12/09)
We will be closed on the following dates:
Friday December 25th, 2009
Monday December 28th, 2009
Friday January 1st, 2010
Website Service Interupted (1/12/09)
Our Surgery Website was unavailable for over 3 days due to server problems at our hosting company.
We apologise for this inconvenience.
Downtime was
from: 2.44 pm Friday 27th November to 6 pm Monday 30th November.
During this time no emails or web form submissions would have been received at the Surgery. Please resend if you think you might have been affected.
Builth Project (4/11/09)
Plans for a new healthcare facility in Builth Wells are progressing. The preferred site is at Love Lane.
Builth & Llanwrtyd Medical Practice can confirm that there are no plans for medical services at Builth Wells Surgery
to relocate. Whatever happens the Surgery will stay put.
Additionally there has been no change in Powys LHBs view that there are too few minor injuries in Builth to be able to sustain a safe injury service. Hence there will be no minor injury unit in the new healthcare facility. Patients with new injuries will still need to be assessed at a hospital outside the Practice area such as Brecon or Llandrindod.
Swine Flu - October in Builth & Llanwrtyd Wells (2/11/09)
October 2009 :
24 telephone calls,
6 Probable Swine Flu cases,
4 Prescriptions for "Tamiflu".
Reminder - There is no Minor Injury Service at Builth & Llanwrtyd Medical Practice (18/10/09)
There is no acute injury service in Builth Wells or Llanwrtyd Wells. This includes Builth Hospital and the doctor surgeries.
As we do not have appointment systems we have treated a large number of patients with injuries on a "walk in" basis. This service is no longer funded and is not part of normal general practice work.
Powys Local Health Board advises patients with new injuries to be assessed at a hospital outside the Practice area such as Brecon or Llandrindod.
This reduction in local service was effective from 2/6/2008 and is a result of decisions made by Powys Local Health Board. They state that the number of minor injuries was too small to sustain a safe service in this area.
Swine Flu - September in Builth & Llanwrtyd Wells (11/10/09)
September 2009 :
23 telephone calls,
3 Probable Swine Flu cases,
0 Prescriptions for "Tamiflu".
Flu Clinics for this Winter (29/9/09)
The Practice starts the annual flu vaccination campaign this October 2009. Please see our flu clinic page for details and watch our podcast for general information.
Flu Clinic Page
New Cancer Information Co-ordinator fro Bracken Trust (27/9/09)
Moray Bradbury is the new Cancer Information Co-ordinator for the Bracken Trust. She is available to deal with any issues outside the clinical care of patients. For instance:
Help getting the right benefit
Eligibility for equipment grants
Advice on transport
She has a background in palliative care.
Her contact number is Tel: 0781 755 1142
New Number for Shropdoc (2/9/09)
Shropdoc provides urgent health care and advice when the surgery is closed.
From this month the contact telephone number has changed to:
08444 06 88 88
Remember, telephoning the surgery after hours puts you straight through to Shropdoc .
For life threatening emergencies dial 999
Swine Flu - August in Builth & Llanwrtyd Wells (28/8/09)
Week August 24th to August 28th:
2 telephone calls,
0 Probable Swine Flu,
0 Prescriptions for "Tamiflu".
Week August 17th to August 21th:
4 telephone calls,
1 Probable Swine Flu,
1 Prescription for "Tamiflu".
Week August 10th to August 14th:
5 telephone calls,
2 Probable Swine Flu,
0 Prescriptions for "Tamiflu".
Week August 3rd to August 7th:
16 telephone calls, 0 Probable Swine Flu,
0 Prescriptions for "Tamiflu".
Week July 27th to July 31st:
36 telephone calls,
5 Probable Swine Flu,
3 Prescriptions for "Tamiflu".
Week July 20th to July 24th:
19 telephone calls, 6 Probable Swine Flu,
2 Prescriptions for "Tamiflu".
Swine Flu - Do not visit the Surgery (17/7/09)
Healthy people with flu-like symptoms should stay at home and check symptoms on the NHS Direct Wales website.
If you are still concerned, phone the surgery for advice - do not visit in case you spread the virus to others, especially at-risk groups.
BBC Swine Flu Link
Simple Advice
Colds and Flu (influenza) have similar symptoms and are often confused. Colds are more common and usually less serious. Flu tends to last longer and can leave you feeling under par for 2 or 3 weeks.
Swine Flu symptoms include a fever and chills. Headache, muscle and bone aches. Dry cough, runny nose and sneezing may also occur. There may also be vomiting and diarrhoea.
Antiviral drugs can lessen symptoms if taken in the first 48 hours but will be reserved for those who are considered at risk: those with chronic conditions (asthma, diabetes, heart disease etc), pregnant women or those under 5.
Antibiotics are of no use unless you get a chest or ear infection as well.
- Rest
- Avoid contact with others
- Drink plenty of non alcoholic fluid
- Take paracetamol, ibuprofen or aspirin - but follow the instructions on the label.
- Stop smoking
Swine Flu - Diagnosis will be made over the phone, no swabs required (5/7/09)
Chief Medical Officer for Wales, Dr Tony Jewell:
“Scientific advice now is that there will continue to be a rise in the number of cases across the UK and, knowing the infection is circulating we should move to treatment rather than trying to slow the spread of disease.
“We will now rely on clinical symptoms for diagnosing the illness rather than laboratory tests.
The focus for antivirals will be for at-risk groups, those with chronic conditions, or pregnant women or those under 5, and getting antivirals to these groups within 48 hours to maximise their effectiveness.
“Healthy people with flu-like symptoms should stay at home, check their symptoms on the NHS Direct Wales website and, if they are still concerned, phone their GP - not go to their local surgery or A&E in case they spread the virus to others, especially at-risk groups.
"The Swine Flu Information Line - 0800 1 513 513 - has also been updated with the latest information.
“Evidence so far suggests that the majority of patients have had relatively mild symptoms and with rest recover within five to seven days.”
Please download and read the following Leaflet: SWINE FLU
PLEASE USE THE NHS DIRECT: FLU SYMPTOM CHECKER Before Phoning the Surgery
Watch the TV Advert
Swine Flu - Practice Update (26/6/09)
At present (26/6/09) there are an increasing number of reported Swine Flu cases in Wales and Powys.
However, even at this stage it makes good sense to try and minimise the possibility of any spread of this Flu Virus.
Therefore if you are unwell with FLU LIKE SYMPTOMS (Fever, Cough, Sore Throat, Runny nose, headache - use the NHS Direct FLU SYMPTOM CHECKER)
DO NOT ATTEND SURGERY
Instead telephone
The Surgery or
NHS Direct on 0845 4647
for further advice.
These arrangements will be reviewed on a daily basis.
NHS Wales Swine Flu News Feed (Automatic Update)
| 03/19/2010 03:12 PM |
| Cerilan Rogers appointed as Director of Specialised and Tertiary Services |
|
The Professional Advisor to the Chief Executive and Public Health Wales Board, Dr Cerilan Rogers, has been appointed as Director of Specialised and Tertiary Services for the Welsh Health Specialised Services Committee.
|
| 03/15/2010 03:40 PM |
| Successful first week for TB community screening sessions |
|
More than 100 people were tested for TB in the first week of the community screening programme in the lower Rhondda Cynon Taf area.
|
| 03/15/2010 02:30 PM |
| Most visited webpages during February 2010 |
|
A list of the ten most popular webpages on all the former NPHS internet sites during February 2010 has been published.
|
Practice History (27/4/09)
We have just uploaded our new Practice History page.
We would welcome any
comments/additions/amendments.
Please contact us with relevant information
A Thank You to Dr Martin Riley (7/4/09)
Builth & Llanwrtyd Medical Practice organised a retirement dinner for Dr Martin Riley at The Lake Country House Hotel and Spa last Sunday.
It was a fantastic day - appreciation, celebration and delicious food. A perfect send off for a highly valued colleague.
His humour, drive and support will be greatly missed.
We all wish Martin and Maggie the very best.
Many thanks to The Lake Country House for making the day special and memorable.
What To Do If the Surgery is Closed (14/3/09)
"Shropdoc" have just launched a new website which has lots of useful information and is well worth a browse.
In the event of a call you will be answered by a trained call handler; they are not nurses or doctors. They will take some basic details and identify any life threatening conditions which may require a 999 call to the ambulance service.
If you do not have a life threatening condition you will be called back by either a doctor or a nurse usually within one hour. If you feel you cannot wait or your condition worsens, then you can call Shropdoc back sooner. The doctor or nurse will discuss your medical condition with you and it may be possible to resolve your concern with advice over the phone.
When necessary, you will be offered an appointment to see one of the GPs at a Primary Care Centre or a home visit (by a GP) depending on the severity of your condition.
Home visits tend to be reserved for the very elderly/bed-bound patients, terminal care cases and those where a move might make their condition worse. Children are generally assumed to be transportable to a base.
The doctor or nurse on the phone will assess the clinical urgency of your condition and an appointment at the Primary Care Centre or a Home visit will be booked based on that clinical urgency:
- Urgent appointment/visit, within 1 hour
- Semi-urgent appointment/visit, within 2 hours
- Routine appointment/visit, within 6 hours
Powys Local Health Board is responsible for commissioning services from "Shropdoc".
Introducing Dr Jane Jansen-Bowen (11/3/09)
Dr Jansen-Bowen qualified in Birmingham and has been working as a GP in the Leominster area.
She is very experienced in General Practice and enjoys being able to provide patient centred, family orientated, co-ordinated care and support.
She and her family will be moving to this area in the near future and we wish them all every success.
New Repeat Prescribing Leaflet (10/3/09)
Please help maintain our system of instant appointments by not using them to get repeat medication.
Requesting repeat medication when consulting with the doctor takes up valuable time, detracting from active patient care.
There are six ways to request repeat medication and we have produced a leaflet that details them all. This can be picked up from reception or downloaded here:
Repeat Prescription Leaflet (pdf)
The six ways to request a repeat script are:
- 1) In person at reception
- 2) Online at this website (secure)
- 3) Post
- 4) Fax
- 5) Email (not secure and not recommended):
- 6) Chemist collection service
For further details see our webpage How to Order a Repeat Prescription
Please help us by ordering your prescription in an appropriate way and not taking up time that could be devoted to patient care.
Surgery Closed for Powys Wide GP Training (26/2/09)
As part of an initiative by Powys Local Health Board, surgeries at Builth and Llanwrtyd will be closed on the afternoon of Thursday 26th february.
Surgeries close at 1pm.
All neighbouring GP practices will be shut too.
This is to allow for a group training session which should lead to improved patient care.
If you need to contact a doctor during this time then telephone Shropdoc on 08450 202131
For medical emergencies dial 999.
FREE Patient Eyecare Referral Scheme (1/2/09)
Any of our patients with a new eyecare problem can now book an appointment directly with one of our local Optometrists (Opticians).
The appointment is free of charge and will often be within 24 hours.
Common eyecare problems include: inflamed eyes, flashes/floaters and infections.
There are two participating local Optometrists:
Evans & Jones Tel: 01597 822143
Giles Marshall Tel: 01982 552801
For further information visit www.eyecarewales.nhs.uk
New Email Confirmation for Online Prescription Requests (12/1/09)
Due to patient demand I have changed the PHP code that handles our online prescription form. As a result patients will now receive a confirmation email after the form has been submitted.
This email will contain an actual copy of the request for your records.
- This online service uses a secure directory
- Is available to registered patients only
- Medication requested must already be on repeat
- Allow 2 working days for processing
https://vault2.secured-url.com/builthsurgery/pages/prescriptions/scriptweb.htm
Recommended Website: "About Operations" (3/1/09)
At Builth & Llanwrtyd Medical Practice we are always on the lookout for interesting and informative medical websites. AboutOperations is well worth checking out, especially if you are awaiting a specialist procedure.
The site
was formed to offer a unique reference point on how to prepare for and recover from an operation.
Due to have a hospital operation? Recently been through surgery? Then you'll have lots of questions - you'll find the answers here.
http://www.aboutoperations.co.uk