CORONAVIRUS

Updated 8 April 2021

Further information can be found at the following link: CoronavirusVaccination

We have been able to offer COVID vaccinations at the Mulberry Centre in Berrow for patients in the first 9 priority groups as identified by the JCVI. Please be aware that from the week commencing 22nd March 2021 the Mulberry Centre will cease to offer first COVID vaccinations. Any patients requiring a first vaccination after that date will need to phone 119 to book an appointment. 

If you have already received a first COVID vaccination at the Mulberry Centre your second vaccination will also be administered at the Mulberry Centre and you will be contacted to arrange this in due course.  

What should I look out for after vaccination?
Although serious side effects are very rare, if you experience any of the following from around 4 days to 4 weeks after vaccination you should seek medical advice urgently.
• a new, severe headache which is not helped by usual painkillers or is getting worse
• a headache which seems worse when lying down or bending over or
• an unusual headache that may be accompanied by:
– blurred vision, nausea and vomiting
– difficulty with your speech
– weakness, drowsiness or seizures
• new, unexplained pinprick bruising or bleeding
• shortness of breath, chest pain, leg swelling or persistent abdominal pain

COVID Vaccination FIRST DOSE AGE 29 and UNDER -  The MHRA and the JCVI continue to monitor the benefits and safety of the AZ vaccine in younger people. You should carefully consider the risk to both you and your family and friends of COVID-19 before making a decision.  Currently JCVI has advised that it is preferable for people under 30 to have a vaccine other than AZ. If you choose to have another COVID-19 vaccine you may have to wait to be protected. You may wish to go ahead with the AZ vaccination after you have considered all the risks and benefits for you.

COVID Vaccination SECOND DOSE AGE 29 and UNDER - If you have already had a first dose of AZ vaccine without suffering any serious side effects you should complete the course. This includes people aged 18 to 29 years who are health and social care workers, unpaid carers and family members of those who are immunosuppressed. It is expected that the first dose of the vaccine will have given you some protection, particularly against severe disease.

COVID Vaccination AGE 50 and OVER OR with underlying medical conditions - All older adults (including health and social care workers over 50 years of age), care home residents, health and social care workers* and adults with certain medical conditions were prioritised in the first phase of the programme because they were at high risk of the complications of COVID-19.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advises that you should still receive any of the available COVID-19 vaccines. The benefits of vaccination in protecting you against the serious consequences of COVID-19 outweigh any risk of this rare condition. You should also complete your course with the same vaccine you had for the first dose.

If your first dose was with AZ vaccine without suffering any serious side effects you should have the second dose on time as you may still be at high risk of the complications of COVID-19. Having the second dose will give you higher and longer lasting protection.

COVID Vaccination AGE 49 and UNDER - Please be patient and do not ring the surgery as we cannot tell you when you will be offered the vaccination.  It is dependant on vaccine delivery so we do not know any more than you at present.  If you haven't been contacted and are eleven weeks after your first dose, then please do contact the surgery.  Before this, please wait to be called.

Every adult will get the vaccine and the programme is rolling out very fast.  If you haven't been called yet, please be patient and wait your turn.  In the meantime, please continue to follow the guidance -   HANDS   FACE   SPACE

Eligible patients may have received a text message inviting them to book their COVID vaccination.  Please be reassured that this is genuine and click on the link to book. 

Carers

We are being contacted by some patients asking us to code them as a carer as this will enable them to get the COVID vaccination sooner.  The NHS defninition of a carer is as follows:

A carer is anyone, including children and adults who looks after a family member, partner or friend who needs help because of their illness, frailty, disability, a mental health problem or an addiction and cannot cope without their support. The care they give is unpaid.

If you genuinely believe that you provide care for someone and they cannot cope without your support, whether they are a family member or friend or neighbour, please let us know by completing an e-consult the link to which is on our home page  Please  explain who you care for and the reason you believe they cannot cope without you.  We will need to have permission from the person concerned to code you as their carer.

For further information on Carers please click on this link

Aged 50+   You will be shortly be receiving a letter from the national booking service.  Please follow the instructions in the letter or click on the link below to book an appointment at a mass vaccination centre or at a community pharmacy setting. You can book an appointment at Taunton Racecourse, Bath & West Showground, Ashton Gate in Bristol or Locking Pharmacy in Weston Super Mare.  However, if you do not wish or are unable to attend one of the mass vaccination centres or a communty pharmacy, you can wait to be invited by text or phone to attend the local vaccination centre.

Age 50+ book your COVID vaccination here

Aged 16 - 64 WITH a long term health condition  You will shortly be contacted, either by text or phone, and invited to attend the local vaccination centre.  Please see the criteria for this group: 

• Chronic respiratory disease *
• Chronic heart disease and vascular disease
• Chronic kidney disease
• Chronic liver disease
• Chronic neurological disease, including severe or profound learning disability
• Diabetes mellitus
• Immunosuppression
• Asplenia or dysfunction of the spleen
• Morbid obesity
• Severe mental illness
• Younger adults in long-stay in-patient, nursing and residential care settings
• Adult carers

Those who are in receipt of a carer’s allowance, or those who are the main carer of an elderly or disabled person, someone who has a severe mental illness or whose welfare may be at risk if the carer falls ill.

* Asthma

An individual with a more severe case of asthma may have been included in the Clinically Extremely Vulnerable group, in which case they will be vaccinated in a higher priority group.
People with asthma which requires continuous or repeated use of systemic steroids or with previous exacerbations requiring hospital admission, will be vaccinated in priority group 6.

This will include:

• anyone who has ever had an emergency asthma admission or;
• those who have an asthma diagnosis and have had 3 prescriptions for oral steroids over a 3-month period (each prescription must fall within separate individual month windows), as an indication of repeated or continuous oral steroids.

Please note that you are not able to have your vaccination at our surgery.  You must attend one of the vaccination centres unless you are housebound.

For all those under 50 without a long term condition, we are grateful for your continued patience.  You will be contacted very shortly.  Please do not ring the surgery about COVID vaccinations as we are unable to tell you any more than this at present.

COVID Vaccination Fraud - We are aware that there are a number of criminals harnessing the vaccination programme and using it as a way to target member of the public and tricking them into handing over cash or financial details. 

There are a number of ways in which this is being done including: 

• Convincing looking text messages (although genuine texts HAVE just been sent out)
• Phoning people directly pretending to be from the NHS or from a local pharmacy

The NHS will never do the following:   

• Ask for payment – the vaccine is free 
• Ask for your bank details 
• Arrive unannounced at your home to administer the vaccines 
• Ask you to prove your identity by sending copies of your personal documents, such as your passport.

Please review this helpful information and share with friends and family who may not be alert to these scams.

Volunteers - if you are interested in volunteering in any capacity to help at COVID vaccination centres, please e-mail  the following mvp.recruitment@somersetft.nhs.uk

Please continue to follow the government guidelines and stay alert.  For further information on the guidelines, please click on the links below.

All patients attending the surgery for a face-to-face appointment and anyone accompanying them, are asked to please wear a face covering.  This minimises the risk of infection and protects patients and staff.

Link to latest NHS guidance and how to access a test for Coronavirus

Guidance on Shielding for People who are Very High Risk

Link to Gov.uk website

The NHS is well prepared for outbreaks of new infectious diseases and has put in place measures to ensure the safety of all patients and NHS staff.

Use the NHS 111 online coronavirus service if you think you have symptoms or:

• you feel you cannot cope with your symptoms at home
• your condition gets worse
• your symptoms do not get better after 7 days

GP Surgeries are not providing sick notes for self isolation

NHS 111 isolation notes    

Government guidance for employees 

Letter to employer re fit note for self-isolation due to Covid symptoms or household member having symptoms

Letter to employer re Shielding due to being in a very high risk category

This page aims to keep patients informed with regards to coronavirus and how it will affect Cheddar Medical Centre. The situation is constantly changing at the moment so for up to date advice visit nhs.uk

What is Cheddar Medical Centre Doing?

Keep Yourself Informed

It is essential that you keep yourself up to date with current advice, you can find this on the nhs.uk website. You can also use this website to access the NHS 111 online service if you are concerned that you may be developing symptoms. 

If you are Asthmatic you can find the Asthma UK Coronavirus advice here.

If you haven't already we would urge all patients to sign up for our SMS service. This is by far the fastest and easiest way for us to keep you up to date. You can find the form at the bottom of this page.

Contain the Virus

If you, or a member of your household, notice any of these symptoms:

• a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back 
• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
• a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you have noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal

You must stay at home. You should arrange a coronavirus test and read the official NHS guidance on staying at home here. You can find full guidance on when to self isolate and how long to stay at home here.

You might have heard some stories in the news about COVID vaccination fraud. Please be aware that the NHS will never:

• ask for payment for a vaccine
• ask for your bank details
• ask for copies of any identity documents
• arrive unannounced at someone's home to administer the vaccine

What is Cheddar Medical Centre doing?

In the interests of looking after our patients and staff at this difficult time we have also made several changes to the way we operate. 

We are asking all patients to wear a face covering if visiting the practice in person. You can find a demonstration of how to make your own face covering here.

Admin: Referrals/Letters/Prescriptions

We are asking all patients to avoid coming to the surgery unless they have an appointment. If you normally collect your prescription from us please choose a pharmacy and we will send your prescription there. If you would normally submit a prescription request on paper you can post your request through the door, sending it to us via post or email it to us (request forms and email addresses can be found at the bottom of this page)

We are continuing to process letters, referrals etc. but please be prepared for a slightly longer wait than usual, especially if yours is a routine request. 

We are not able to issue sick notes for people who are self-isolating due to coronavirus. However you can download and print a self-certification letter to give to your employer at the bottom of this page. 

The usual rules regarding prescriptions still apply and we will continue to process your requests within the normal "3 working days" timeframe.

Access

The main door to the building is locked. All visitors are required to answer some questions about their current health and have their temperature checked before they are allowed to come in. This is to protect staff and patients. 

If you have a pre-booked appointment and no symptoms of coronavirus you will be allowed into the building. Otherwise you will be asked to wait outside while we deal with your query. Anyone with symptoms of coronavirus will be told to return home and self-isolate immediately.

Appointments

For the foreseeable future the majority of GP appointments will be conducted over the telephone. Unless instructed to come to the practice you should assume that you will receive a phone call from a doctor at around the time of your appointment. Please make sure your phone is charged and within reach at this time. 

Appointments with nurses will be restricted to only things which are immediately necessary and you should notify us if you develop any symptoms ahead of your appointment. 

Contacting us

Our phone lines are extremely busy at the moment however there are other ways to contact us:

email: cheddarmc.chedmed@nhs.net 

Online: If you have signed up for online access you can request prescriptions here. 

Post: Our postal address can be found at the top of our website. You can find useful forms below which can be printed and sent to us. 

Useful Documents

Self Isolation Note - you can use this link to generate a self-isolation note in the event that you (or someone in your household) develops symptoms of coronavirus.

Prescription Request Form 

Registration Form 

Temporary Registration Form

SMS Messaging Service - Consent Form

Confidentiality

Here at Cheddar Medical Centre we safeguard all confidential information about you and your health. All staff are required to sign a confidentiality document when they start work at the surgery. This is to ensure that they are fully aware of the need to maintain patient confidentiality at all times.

So that we can all work together for your benefit, we may need to share information about you with others in healthcare. We only ever use or pass on information about you if healthcare workers have a genuine need for it and it is in your interest. Wherever possible we will remove personal details that would identify you. 

Patient Information Leaflet - Your Information

Patient Information Leaflet - Consent

How we use Your Information to Provide Your Healthcare

Fair Processing Notice - Overview

Fair Processing Notice - In Detail

Freedom of Information

The ICO has published a new Model Publication Scheme that all public authorities are required to adopt.

https://ico.org.uk/media/for-organisations/documents/1153/model-publication-scheme.pdf

Chaperone

You have the right to ask for a chaperone for any appointment, read our Chaperone Policy to find out more.

Comments & Complaints

We have our own complaints procedure and, if you need to make a complaint, please address it to the Practice Manager, Mrs Pauline Drummond who will take full details of your concerns and decide how to deal with the problem. Full details of our complaints procedure may be found in our complaints leaflet. 

We would be grateful for any suggestions you may have to improve the services we offer – please direct these to the Practice Manager. 

The Health Service Ombudsman

The Health Service Ombudsman has published a booklet that describes the ‘six principles for remedy’ in relation to complaints handling and involves:

1. Getting it right
2. Being customer focused
3. Being open and accountable
4. Acting fairly and proportionately
5. Putting things right
6. Seeking continuous improvements

If you remain unhappy after everything has been done to try to resolve your concern or complaint you have the right to approach the Ombudsman.
Tel: 0345 015 4033
Email: phso.enquiries@ombudsman.org.uk
Write: Millbank Tower, Millbank, London SW1P 4QP.

Rights & Responsibilities

You have a right to expect a high standard of medical care from our practice and we will try at all times to provide the very best care possible within the resources available.

In order to assist you in this we require that you take full responsibility for ensuring that you do not abuse the service. For example, it is your responsibility to ensure that you keep medical appointments and follow the advice given.

You must accept that we require 72 hrs notice to process a prescription request and that a 'normal routine appointment' is likely to be offered within a week of your request. 

You must also accept that our 'emergency' appointments relate to medical urgency, not personal urgency. Please remember this when making appointments with our reception team.

Finally, you must understand that our reception team will ask for explicit information when dealing with a request for a visit or telephone conversation with our GPs. They are part of our team here and are subject to confidentiality agreements. Our GPs demand this information to enable us to safely manage patient risks therefore do not be surprised when this happens.

Very occasionally a practice/patient relationship breaks down completely. In this situation the patient may choose to register with a different practice. We accept this and will process this request as quickly as possible.

Zero Tolerance

The practice has the right to remove any patient from their list. This would generally only follow a warning that had failed to remedy the situation and we would normally give the patient a specific reason for the removal.

Patients who are aggressive, verbally abusive, violent or threaten violence towards GPs or their staff will be reported to the police and will no longer be able to use the services at this practice.

The Kings of Wessex student Information

We are aware that some of our patients believe that they must see a GP to achieve evidence for school when they have been poorly and away from school.

We would like to clarify matters:

• You should only make an appointment to see a GP if there is a medical reason to do so
• You should not make an appointment to prove to school that you have seen a GP to justify an absence from school as the GP is unable to certify any absence
• If you are poorly with ‘normal’ viral illness (sickness & diarrhoea/ cold/ flu etc.) then these are better dealt with by staying at home, drinking lots of fluid and resting, not spreading this infection around to other people

Our advice would be to stock the medicine cabinet with:

• Pain killers
• Anti-diarrhoeal medicine
• Rehydration mixture
• Indigestion remedy
• Cold and flu remedies
• First aid kit with bandages,
• plasters, antiseptic wipes and
• cream, eyewash, medical tape,
• sterile dressing, thermometer

We understand, like the academy does, how important it is for you to attend school and would encourage you to do so.

However we cannot provide certification regarding sickness.

Please find a link below to the letter that our GPs would provide should they be asked for this type of information.

Letter to Schools (certificate) 2014

Your GPs are here to medically treat their patients and it is really important that poorly patients can access this service.

As people live longer, and more serious illnesses are treated outside of hospitals with GPs monitoring the patient’s health directly, the pressure for appointments is growing.

We must ask you to respect this and only see the GP when YOU feel you need to.

The Academy understands that this is our position.

The academy have explained may be students whose attendance is approaching 15% absence or who have a history of non-attendance whereby the school may well direct them to the GP for medical advice. They have explained that is because the school is not aware of any obvious reason for their continued illness and so they would like the student to explore with a GP the reasons for their non-attendance NOT to achieve a certificate for the school.

However the decision to make a GP appointment is your own, and please do not make an appointment if there is no medical reason to see a GP or just to achieve a certification as this is not available - other than the letter above.

Feel free to print this off and use as you see necessary however this will not satisfy the academy regarding your continued absence.