Sutterton Surgery News
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Whether you are looking for care services or just interested in what Lincs has to offer, keep informed with the Lincs Care Services Directory. This independent directory contains information about what care is available to you as well as funding options. And this includes information for a wide range of health conditions, from elderly care to learning disability care.
For more information, please visit the Care Choices website.
PPG Meeting To Relay Your Concerns
Dear Patients
Due to the imminent changes in the practice, our Patient Participation Group (PPG) have volunteered to hold a short catch up here in the surgery for you to ask any questions or express any concerns you may have regarding the changes.
You are welcome to call into the surgery and meet the PPG members
Week commencing 22 January 11:00 until 12:00 - Monday to Friday (for one week only)
We look forward to seeing you.
Karen Tetther
Practice Manager
New Dispensing Text Messaging
We have introduced a new text messaging service for the dispensary.
When your prescription is ready for collection, we will send a text message to the mobile number we hold on your health records.
If you have an item owing/out of stock, we will send you a message to notify you of this, a further message will be sent when the medication is ready for collection.
If you have not received a text message please do not ask for your medication.
We will need up to date mobile numbers and your consent to receive SMS text messages, if you do not wish to receive these messages, please let us know.
We have received several phone calls from patients concerned this is a scam, please be assured this is from the surgery.
Thank you
Karen Tetther
Practice Manager
Exciting News
As from 1st February 2024, Dr Amira Ibrahim and Dr Naveed Yousaf have taken over the practice.
Dr Andrew Hughes retired at the end of January 2024. He has finally been persuaded to have his much needed hip operation.
We hope you will join us in supporting our new GPs and wishing Dr Hughes a very healthy and happy retirement.
Thank you
Karen, Practice Manager
Service update
Unfortunately, due to unplanned staff absences, we are asking you to allow 4 working days before you collect your medication. We are working hard to address this, however, in the meantime, please bear with us.
We will be introducing a new text messaging service, which will advise you that your medication is ready for collection. Please do not attempt to collect your medication until you receive this message.
Thank you
Christmas & New Year Bank Holidays
We will be closed on the bank holidays over Christmas and New Year:
- Monday 25th December 2023
- Tuesday 26th December 2023
- Monday 1st January 2024
We will be open as normal outside those dates. The build up to Christmas is a very busy time for us in the surgery and especially around the bank holidays. Please consider this when you are ordering your prescriptions and order them a bit earlier than you need.
Also, normally we ask for 3 working days for prescriptions but over this period they may take a bit longer due to how busy it gets.
We hope you all have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!
Phone-Lines Up Again
UPDATE: Our phone-lines are up again. We understand many of you have been trying to contact us throughout the day and we apologise for any inconvenience this has caused. Please bear in mind our lines will be busy as you call us, please be patient with us.
Thank you to all who came to our Clinic
We had another very successful Flu and Covid clinic again this year. Thank you so much for your continued support both in your donations and purchasing books, knitting and supporting our raffles etc.
See how you all helped us and all the pics we took here.
Missed our Covid & Flu clinic?
We are now holding future clinics in the practice. These will be an hour-long, walk-in clinics 20/10/2023 and 27/10/2023. Please give the reception a call and we will give you an estimated time to attend.
Alternatively, please make an appointment with the practice nurse.
When you stop smoking, good things start to happen!
Stoptober is back and is calling on the over 5 million smokers in England to join the thousands of smokers who are committing to quitting this October. This year's Stoptober mass quit attempt is as important as ever, with quitting remaining one of the best things a smoker can do for their health. When you stop smoking good things start to happen - quitting will allow you to start moving better, breathe more easily and give you more money to spend.
Stoptober offers a range of free quitting tools. Just search ‘Stoptober’ for more information or visit the Better Health Quit Smoking Website.
Flu & Covid Clinics
We are holding our Flu & Covid clinic on 07/10/23, 8:00 - 17:00 at the Sutterton Village Hall. No appointment is needed, you can just turn up.
You are eligible for these vaccines if you are:
- over 65
- 6-64 and either a clinical at-risk group, immunosuppressed or live with someone immunosuppressed
- Healthcare workers or carers
Housebound patients and care home residents will be contacted directly.
We hope to see you there!
Your Repeat Prescriptions Through The NHS App
Did you know you can manage repeat prescriptions from us in the NHS App?
You can easily choose where your prescriptions are sent. So, if you know you'll be away from home or you are moving home, you can change your nominated pharmacy from within the app.
You can also order your prescription at any time that suits you. There’s no need to wait to join a telephone queue or wait until the GP surgery opens.
It’s easy to use, and, if you hit a snag, you can go to ‘Help’ in the top right-hand corner of the app or visit this website.
Find out more about the NHS App.
Repeat Prescription Collection
We are asking patients if they can leave us a little more time than the 3 working days to collect their repeat prescriptions, due to staff shortages and the bank holiday.
Thank you for your patience.
May Covid Boosters
We are holding more Covid booster clinics 16/05/2023 (2pm-6pm) and 17/05/2023 (8.30am-12.30pm) for all those eligible but couldn't make our previous clinics. These will be held at the surgery again, no appointment necessary.
May Bank Holidays
Please remember we will be closed on the 08/05/2023 bank holiday to celebrate the Coronation, as well as the annual bank holiday 01/05/2023 and 29/05/2023. Apart from these 3 days, we will be open normal times and days.
Due to these bank holidays, all these weeks will be busy and we recommend to plan ahead any prescriptions or appointments that are due. We appreciate your patience during these weeks and hope you all enjoy your holidays.
Thanks!
Spring 2023 Covid Boosters
Next week we are holding 2 Covid clinics at the surgery for eligible patients on 26/04/2023 and 28/04/2023 between 2pm to 6pm. No Appointments necessary.
Patients who are eligible are currently those who are over 75 years old or immunosuppressed. All care home patients who are eligible will be contacted directly by the surgery. For more information please see our Covid Information page.
Thanks!
Prescription Charge Changes
Starting 01/04/2023, the price of prescriptions will increase to £9.65 per item. The price of pre-payments will also increase:
- 3 month certificate - £31.25
- 12 month certificate - £111.60
- HRT certificate - £19.30
For more information, please see our Prescription page and the NHS website.
Thanks!
Easter Closing Dates
We will be closed 07/04/2023 and 10/04/2023 for the Easter bank holidays. If you need urgent medical attention, please contact 111. For life threatening emergencies, please call 999.
Also, please keep these dates in mind when ordering your prescriptions as we may be shut when you are a due to run out and will be particularly busy over this period. We recommend ordering a little earlier than normal if you are due on or around these dates. We hope you all have a good extended weekend!
Nationwide IT Issues
The IT issues with our health record system has now been resolved. Thank you for your patience.
Menopause Support Group
Come and enjoy a chat every 2nd Monday of the month at Baytree's NHS Wellbeing Hub. Our PCN Social Prescribers provide a peer support group for those approaching, experiencing or beyon the menopause. All are welcome!
Meet Our Social Prescriber
Come meet Laura, our Social Prescriber, this Thursday 9th between 9:30 and 12:00 at the surgery. No appointments needed, just come and chat.
She is here to support people looking to meet new people and getting involved in the community as well as support people dealing with anxiety, social isolation, low mood etc. Please see her full flyer here.
Come Join Sutterton Singers
Come join us for lots of fun, coffee and of course singing! Starting Monday 13th March 10am-12pm at the Sutterton Village Hall, continuing every 2nd Monday of the month. We are all about making new friends and having fun. All ages and abilities welcome.
You can find us at Sutterton Village Hall, Park Avenue, Sutterton, Boston, PE20 2JP. For more info please contact Laura on 07890949430 or laura.rodrigues@nhs.net.
Ordering Medication on the Answer Machine
During February, we won't be using our answer machine facility to order prescriptions. This was following several of your suggestions and concerns regarding this facility. You can still order prescriptions in several other ways, please see our Prescription page for further details.
After February, we will review the facility again and see if we should continue it on. We apologise for any inconvenience.
Thanks!
A Big Thank You To The Pilgrim Heart & Lung Fund
Thank you PHLF for helping us purchase two 24hr Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitors. From the support and generous donations from your members, we have been provided with a cheque to purchase these BP monitors.
These BP monitors will be a great help in detecting patients with undiagnosed Hypertension and/or Atrial Fibrillation. Both of these are risk factors for developing serious cardiovascular diseases like heart failure and stroke.
Phone Lines Back Up
Our phone lines are back online! Please feel free to contact us through our usual channels. Our internet issues have now been fully resolved. Thank you all for your patience. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
Christmas & New Year Opening Times 2022/23
Sutterton Surgery will closed during the bank holidays over Christmas & New Year, the dates can be seen here.
We are wishing you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from all the staff at the surgery. We hope you all have an enjoyable, safe and warm holiday.
Access More Of Your Health Records
Please be aware this has been indefinitely postponed. - Updated 07/12/2022
From November 2022, NHS Digital are expanding the records accessible through online services. Patients will be able to see more detailed health records through their online services including medications, test results, consultation notes, known allergies, ongoing and past problems as well as past immunisations.
This is being rolled out automatically and will affect all users with online accounts, even ones after these changes have been rolled out. For more information, please see our Patient Record page and NHS Digital.
Thanks!
World Suicide Prevention Day 10 September 2022
Things need to change. We need to talk about our mental health.
Things to look out for:
Continually lacking energy
Becoming anxious, irritable or confrontational
Mood swings
Acting recklessly
Sleeping too much or too little
Isolating themselves from others
Focusing on the negatives
Using drugs or alcohol to cope with situations
Discussing or mentioning suicide
Help is available:
If you live in Lincolnshire, and need help give us a call on : 0800 001 433 ( open 24/7)
If you are under 18, call Here4you advice and self-referral line on: 0800 234 6342 (open 24/7)
www.lpft.nhs.uk/suicide or www.samaritans.org
Download the Stay Alive App via the App store
Alternatively please contact:
Steps2change
0303 123 4000 - www.lpft.nhs.uk/steps2change-lincs
2022 Covid & Flu Boosters
We are now offering Covid & Flu Boosters on 15/10/2022, 8am to 5pm at the Sutterton Village Hall. Patients are eligible if they are either over 50, have underlying health conditions or are carers aged 16-49. No appointment is necessary. We hope to see you there!
Care Home and housebound patients will be contacted by the practice reception staff shortly. We aim to vaccinate patients in this cohort, week commencing 10 October 2022.
Thank you.
Changes to Prescriptions
We kindly ask that you allow 3 working days before collecting your medication, due to the increasing demand with new patients registering at the practice.
When ordering using our answer phone facility, please ensure you provide your name, date of birth and all the items you are wanting to order.
Thank you all for your patience.
Need Help Losing Weight?
Ready to lose weight, be happier and healthier? One You Lincolnshire are promoting their weight management app to help support you. For more information please visit the gloji website.
What do you think of our appointment service?
This questionnaire is now closed.
We are looking for people to provide feedback and help improve our appointment service. If you are willing to provide us feedback, please complete this questionnaire from the South Lincolnshire Rural Primary Care Network. The questionnaire will be up for a week or two. Thank you.
Staff Absences
We are currently experiencing some staff absences and have a reduced number of staff on in dispensary and reception. Although we are doing the best we can to keep up with the medication requests we have received, please be aware it may take a little longer than the normal 2 working days for them to be ready.
We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your patience.
Face Coverings & Attending The Surgery
The wearing of face masks is no longer required when entering the practice. If you have respiratory symptoms it is recommended that you continue to protect our more vulnerable patients and continue to wear a face covering. Thank you.
National Carers Week & Young Carers' Newsletter
Did you know it's National Carers Week 2022 this week? For this week, we wanted to especially recognise young carers and all the support they provide our community. If you are a young carer or just interesting in supporting them, please take a moment to read our Newsletter. It contains many useful links and events that may help you.
If you are a young carer and need some help or a professional supporting a young carer and need some guidance, please contact either Sally Stanfield directly at sally.stanfield@lincolnshire.gov.uk or Rachel Stokes at youngcarers@lincolnshire.gov.uk
Queen's Jubilee & Prescriptions
The surgery will be closed next week on 2nd and 3rd June to celebrate the Queen's jubilee. Please bear this in mind and consider ordering a little earlier when you order your prescriptions for around these dates.
Website Changes
We have currently been doing some changes to our website by updating existing pages and adding a few new pages. Some of the key changes include improving our test result page to explain our processes of having tests and receiving their results. We are also adding a patient zone to answer questions our patient group have asked us and to show all the things they have helped us with.
We hope these changes will make it clearer what's going on here. We thank you for your patience in the meantime.
Staff Re-shuffle
Our dispensary manager (Julie) is moving to help our delivery team with the nomad boxes. Joanne will takeover as dispensary manager and wish her all the very best in this new role. Congratulations Jo!
Bank Holiday Prescriptions
Just a quick reminder of the upcoming Bank Holiday on Monday 2nd May. We are closed over this bank holiday and they do tend to get quite busy around them. If you are due to run out around the Bank Holiday, please consider ordering a little earlier than normal to allow us more time to get it ready.
Hope you all have a great Bank Holiday!
Covid Safety Measures
Evening,
We will continue to maintain many of our safety measures to protect our practice and vulnerable patients, following the Government announcement to ease the remaining Covid restrictions. The full list of these measures can be found on our Covid Information Page.
Welcome to Our New ANP
Morning,
We are delighted to welcome not one but two Advanced Nurse Practitioners to the practice: Hilda and Euan. They will both provide support to Dr Hughes and all our patients.
Thanks!
Patient Records & Online Services
Morning,
We have now extended the records patients can access through online services, such as Patient Access. For more details please see our Patient Record page. To Opt-In, please contact a member of staff. Please be careful when accessing and handling these records as we have limited control over who can access them via your online accounts. Thanks!
Join Us With Our Events
Evening,
We have now launched a new page for all the social and health related events we will be holding. If you want to get more involved or just half some fun, take a quick look and see if there's anything that interests you. This month we kick off with Pancake Flipping. Then in May we will hold a quiz to test your wits. For more information please see the event page. We look forward to seeing you there!
Also, why not join our Sutterton Surgery Facebook Group?
Protect Yourself And Get the Booster
Morning all,
The NHS in Lincolnshire is asking everyone aged over 18 who is eligible to please come forward and get their Covid-19 booster now - don't delay!
Omicron is a real threat to all of us and getting boosted is the best way to protect you and your family. We’re also urging people who’ve only had one vaccination so far, or possibly none at all, to come forward as quickly as possible. Visit this website or call 119 to find out how.
Are You Covid-19 Positive?
Morning all,
We just wanted to remind patients to not enter the surgery if they have a positive Covid-19 test or possible covid symptoms. Please take a look at the current Government guidance on stay-at-home measures for further information. Help keep our practice and our vulnerable patients safe.
Suspicious Patient Access Emails
There have been reports of some suspicious Patient Access emails. Patient Access has provided guidance here.
The Surgery over Christmas
Christmas is coming! Our tree is up and our Christmas music is playing. We hope you are all wrapped up warm and keeping safe.
Bereavement Support Coffee Morning
Afternoon,
Our Bereavement Support Group is holding a coffee morning Saturday 11th December 2021 at 10:30 - 12:00pm in the lounge at Sutterton Village Hall. All are welcome, whether you are a new or returning member. Just know you are not alone. We look forward to seeing you all there and listening to your experiences.
- Karen A
Dispensary Maintenance
Morning,
On Wednesday 10th November, there will be some brief maintenance in dispensary 1pm-3pm. The disruption isn't expected to last too long but please keep this in mind when collecting your medications. Thanks!
Flu Jabs
Please contact the practice to book in your flu jab as we have plenty of supplies now. Thank you for all those who turned up to the Flu Clinics!
Bereavement Support Group
Morning all,
I wanted to spotlight our Bereavement Support Group for those who have lost loved ones. If you are interested, please give us a call and Karen Allen will be happy to discuss it further with you. Thanks!
Covid Booster Vaccination
Hello all,
We are now contacting patients to book them in for their Covid Boosters as we have some limited supplies. Please wait to be contacted as we only have limited supplies. Thank you for your patience and keep an eye on this website for updates as more Boosters may come in.
Prescription Collection
Morning,
We have now opened up our waiting room for people collecting prescriptions. Please wear a mask, sanitise your hands and maintain social distancing when coming into the surgery. Thank you!
Support Your Surgery
The BMA have launched their Support Your Surgery campaign to help GP practices out during the pandemic. Please sign their petition calling on the UK Government to provide the urgent resourcing needed to increase the number of GPs in England.
Dr Warren
Afternoon,
sadly we can confirm that Dr Warren has decided leave the practice and retire from medicine. We want to thank him for all the work he has done and the patients he has helped. He will be missed!
- Oliver
Introduction
Hello all,
We are going to launch a blog page for Sutterton Surgery. This blog will provide brief updates on what's going on here at the surgery. We hope this will keep people up to date with the latest news.
Thank you all and stay safe.
Karen, Dr Hughes & staff