As You Will All Be Aware Dr Mclay Retired from the Practice on September

Dear Patients

Welcome to the The Beggarwood surgery Winter 2013Newsletter.

Practice News

We would like to congratulate Mrs Rachael Scott, Assistant Manager, on the recent birth of her adorable baby son Elliott.

Receptionists

We would like to welcome Joanne Connelly and Andrea Date to our superb reception team.

Appointments

You can now make your appointments on line. If you would like to use this service please ask the receptionist for a registration form. Please note that individual registration is required for each member of a household.

We still have a high number of patients who do not attend their appointments. During November and December 2012 160 patients failed to attend GP appointments and 77patients did not attend their nurse appointments.

We may, in line with other surgeries in Basingstoke, write to you if you fail to attend on more than one occasion. Please could we ask you to cancel your appointment if you feel youno

longer need it? All non attendances are recorded.

Repeat prescriptions

Unfortunately, more and more patients are leaving it quite late to order their items. We do require a full 48 hours to process the prescription by checking the drugs requested, processing the prescription, the doctor has to then check the items and any related tests, sign it or arrange for any tests or check ups. If you have your drugs dispensed at the pharmacy next door the prescription needs making up, checking and getting ready for you. So please give us sufficient time to undertake all these steps.

Did you know you can order repeat prescriptions from our website?

Registration is quick and easy and need only be done once. When you are registered the form will remember the details you enter and you can set it to send you email reminders when your repeats are due.

A well stocked medicine cabinet during the winter months is a must. Medications should include the following:

Paracetamol, anti-diarrhoeal medicine, rehydration mixture, indigestion remedy and plasters.

Updating your medical records

Could we or the hospital contact you in an emergency?

When you next call in to the surgery, please spend a few extra minutes here and check with our receptionist that your home, mobile and work telephone numbers are correct.This is essential, as we sometimes need to contact you urgently regarding appointments or test results and we cannot always leave a message on an answer phone.

When to visit the A&E Dept at Basingstoke Hospital

The number of people attending A&E and calling 999 for an ambulance is growing each year. Ambulance services, hospitals and GP surgeries get especially busy during winter. Choosing the right service best suited to your illness or injury will relieve the pressure on A&E, GPs and ambulance services.

The function of an A&E department is to treat patients who have either suffered a serious injury or accident, or, who are suffering from a sudden and serious illness or condition. A&E is not an alternative to your GP. It is not appropriate to go to the A&E dept simply because your doctor cannot see you immediately.

For urgent problems when the surgery is closed:

For emergenciesplease telephone your surgery on the usual number (396500)have a pen and paper ready and listen to the whole of the message. The message will give you the number of the doctor on call or Hantsdoc. Hantsdoc is the out of hours providerforurgent out of hours care.

This service is available between6.30 pm and 8 am Monday to Friday, and from 6.30 pm Friday to 8 am Monday at weekends.

All out of hours cover is for emergencies only.

If you, or the person you are with, are suffering from any of the conditions listed below please go straight to A&E or call an ambulance by dialling 999:

Suspected heart attack
Persistent, severe chest pain
Stroke and transient ischaemic attack (TIA)
Loss of consciousness
Severe bleeding
Suspected broken bones
Deep wounds such as stab wounds
Severe breathing difficulties
Head injury including a hard blow to the head from a fall, knock or assault
Acute confused state, fits that are not stopping after 10 minutes in a known epileptic. In view of this, please dial 999.

The following reasons do not require A&E attendance:

Coughs and colds - most people would be best just to stay at home or see their local pharmacist;

Old injuries or joint problems – these are best seen by your GP, at least initially.

To get a 'second opinion' on an existing medical condition rather than using the GP service.

Toothache - you need to be seen by a dentist.

You have run out of medication - plan ahead to make sure you don’t run out of medicines, and make sure you have plenty for when you go away and during holiday periods when many pharmacies are closed.

What to do if you have run of medicinesand the surgery is shut

If you run out of prescription medicines you may be able to get an emergency supply without a prescription from a community pharmacist or supermarket pharmacy.

Lists of open pharmacies can be found at:

You'll be interviewed by the pharmacist to find out:

if you're usually prescribed the medication
if there's a clear and immediate medical need
if there's no other way to get a prescription

The pharmacist will also make sure that the dose you ask for is considered suitable.

A charge will be made for the medicines and the service. This may vary between pharmacies.

If a pharmacy can’t help, you may be able to get a prescription from a GP out-of-hours service. This is the service that your GP runs outside of their usual opening hours, and on public holidays.

This will depend on the type of medicine, and how essential it is.

If you're away from home, you may be able to have a consultation with a local GP and get a prescription for a limited supply of medicines.

If you’re given a prescription, you'll still need to find a pharmacy that's open.

Are you feeling tired all the time?

Many cases of unexplained tiredness are due to stress,not enough sleep,poor dietand other lifestyle factors. Use these self-help tips to restore your energy levels.

Eat often:a good way to keep up your energy through the day is to eatregular meals rather than a large meal less often.

Get exercise: you might feel too tired to exercise, butregular exercise will make you feel less tired in the long run and you’ll have more energy. Even a single 15-minute walk can give you an energy boost, and the benefits increase with more frequent physical activity.

Start with a small amount of exercise. Build up your physical activity gradually over weeks and months until you reach the recommended goal of two and a half hours of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, such as cycling or fast walking,every week.

Lose weight: if your body is carrying excess weight, it can be exhausting. It also puts extra strain on your heart, which can make you feel tired. Lose weight and you’ll feel much more energetic. Apart from eating healthily, the best way to lose weight is to be more active and do more exercise.

Get enough sleep: it sounds obvious, but two-thirds of us suffer from sleep problems, and many people don’t get the sleep they need to stay alert through the day. The Royal College of Psychiatrists' advice on getting a good night’s sleep is to go to bed and get up in the morning at the same time everyday; avoid naps through the day, and have a hot bath before bed (as hot as you can bear without scalding you) for at least 20 minutes.

Reduce stress: stress uses up a lot of energy. Try to introduce relaxing activities into your day. This could be working out at the gym, or a gentler option such as listening to music, reading or spending time with friends.

Cut out caffeine: The Royal College of Psychiatrists recommends that anyone feeling tired should cut out caffeine. It says the best way to do this is to gradually stop having all caffeine drinks (and that includes coffee and tea and cola drinks) over a three-week period. Try to stay off caffeine completely for a month to see if you feel less tired without it.

You may find that stopping caffeine gives you headaches. If this happens, cut down more slowly on the amount of caffeine that you drink.

Drink less alcohol: although a few glasses of wine in the evening helps you fall asleep, you sleep less deeply after drinking alcohol. The next day you’ll be tired even if you sleep a full eight hours.

Cut down on alcohol before bedtime.

You’ll get a better night’s rest and have more energy. The NHS recommends that men should not regularly drink more than 3-4 units a day. Women should not regularly drink more than 2-3 units a day. ‘Regularly’ means drinking every day or most days of the week.

Drink more water: sometimes you feel tired simply because you’re mildly dehydrated. A glass of water will do the trick, especially after exercise

New! Basingstoke Food Bank

Every day people in the UK go hungry for reasons ranging from redundancy to receiving an unexpected bill on a low income. Basingstoke Food bank provides a minimum of three days emergency food and support to people experiencing temporary crisis in Basingstoke. To obtain a voucher for three day emergency food please visit the Citizens Advice Bureau.

This new service will run from TrinityMethodistChurch, Sarum Hill, every Wednesday and Friday between 10.30am and 2.30pm.

Substance Misuse Advice Drop-in advice service for carers, friends and family

This is held at the Basingstoke Discovery Centre every other

Wednesday from 1.30pm to 3pm

Advice, information and signposting available.

Just come in, or call for more information:

Cecilia 07718 146417 or

Lynn 07736 792833