Surgery Information

Routine Appointments

The surgery timetable is in the centre of this brochure and gives details when each doctor is available for consultation. To make a routine appointment to see your doctor, either telephone 01822 613517 /616131 /615855 or call in at reception.

When making an appointment, please bear the following points in mind:

• Please avoid telephoning before 10.00am or after 5.00pm to arrange a routine appointment.
• It is anticipated that a routine appointment is not likely to last more than 10 minutes. If you think that you will need longer, please let the receptionist know when you make the appointment.
• A routine appointment is normally for one patient only. If you need other members of your family to see the doctor please discuss this with the receptionist when making the appointment.
• We have a duty doctor each day that conducts telephone consultations each morning and afternoon to discuss urgent requests and he/she will then arrange to see you as necessary.
• Patients are registered with the Surgery and not with a particular doctor. You are entitled to choose whichever doctor you wish for any given appointment.
• If you express a preference for a particular doctor, please be aware that you may have to wait longer for that appointment.
• If you find that you are unable to keep your appointment, please let us know on 01822 613517 /616131 /615855 as soon as possible, so that the appointment can be offered to another patient.
• It may be necessary for us to cancel an appointment session at short notice when a doctor is unavoidably absent. We will make every effort to make alternative arrangements on that day.

Test Results

Most blood and urine tests are available 2 to 3 days after they have been taken. Other tests may take longer.

You will be contacted by telephone or letter if there is an abnormality with any result. Normal results will not usually be passed to you in this way, however you may wish to telephone the surgery for the result. If you would like to discuss the result with your doctor, it is advisable to check that the test results have arrived before arranging an appointment.

Also please phone yourself as, for reasons of confidentiality, results are not normally given to a third party.

Home Visits

Home visits are available, at the doctor’s discretion, to those patients too ill to attend the surgery. If at all possible, please come into the surgery as home visits are time consuming and a more complete assessment can be made at the surgery.

If you feel that a home visit is necessary, please bear the following points in mind.

• If possible, please phone before 11am to request a home visit.
• Please give the receptionist the following information:
  • The patient's name and age.
  • The patient's address and telephone number
  • A brief description of the symptoms

The doctor may telephone you, prior to visiting your home, to assess the urgency of the problem so that the doctor can plan his/her rounds.

Duty Doctor

Each day, one of our doctors (usually one of the Partners) is nominated to be the Duty Doctor. His or her role is to deal with all urgent requests and problems that arise on that day. In addition the Duty Doctor conducts Telephone Consultations with patients (am and pm) and, if urgent, will arrange to see patients that day too. On occasion you may be given an appointment with the Practice Nurse rather than the Duty Doctor. Each case will be assessed individually.

Should you feel that you need a same day appointment, the receptionist will take your number and the Duty Doctor will call you back.

The doctor will sort each request according to need (this is known as TRIAGE) and will arrange for you an appointment that is mutually agreeable.

Some days are busier than others and some people may be more or less unwell than you. Please bear this in mind when using this service - it may be more appropriate to have an appointment later in the week.

Please be reassured that you will be seen on the same day if your condition or
problem needs urgent attention.

Urgent Appointments

If you think you have an urgent medical problem, please let the receptionist know and the Duty Doctor will assess the level of priority and an appointment will be given on the same day if required.

Doctors holiday Cover

The doctors usually arrange to cover each other for short periods of leave. However on occasions we may employ an additional doctor, known as a Locum, to provide extra assistance.

Attending the surgery with young children

This is a baby friendly surgery. Facilities aimed to make your visit with children less stressful include:

• Easy parking
• Baby changing facilities - breastfeeding mums are welcome to use this area.
• Child friendly area in each waiting room
• We would encourage patients to use the buggy parking area at the entrance to the surgery.
• Lift

Please feel free to breast feed your baby or, if you are bottle feeding and would like the feed to be warmed, please ask the Health Visitor or one of the Receptionists.

Patients with hearing loss

We have a portable hearing loop at reception for patients who are hard of hearing. This can be moved into the doctor's consultation room on request for your consultation.

Patients with sight problems

For any patients who find it hard to read this brochure, we offer it on CD format. Please request a copy from Jo Pole, Information Officer, if required.

Medical Records

If you wish to have access to your medical records please either ask your General Practitioner or speak to the Practice Manager.

Legislation

This practice operates in compliance with:

The Freedom of Information Act 2000
The Data Protection Act 1998

If you require further information about these Acts please enquire at the reception desk or arrange to speak with the Practice Manager.

Complaints

If you have a particular complaint that you wish to bring to our attention, please speak to the Practice Manager in the first instance and she will do her utmost to resolve your complaint. She will immediately arrange a preliminary discussion with you to resolve the matter if possible.

If a further investigation is required, that involves other clinicians or staff within the Practice, this will be conducted within a week and you will be invited to attend a follow up meeting as required to inform you of the outcome.

If your complaint is still unresolved to your satisfaction, she will refer you to the appropriate authority within NHS Devon.

Patient Registration

In the UK since 2004, all patients are registered with a practice and not an individual doctor. Therefore, at Tavyside Health Centre, we do not have named doctors for each patient. That does not mean we do not recognise the doctor-patient relationship, which for many is very important. You are entitled still to choose which doctor you would prefer to see, and we recognise that this preference may change over time or from problem to problem.

Please be aware that we (the doctors) all need to attend courses and meetings; and particularly in the present political climate, work on developing the practice… and take leave. The result is you may not always be able to see the doctor of your choice if you wish to be seen within a few weeks. If you do not specify a named doctor you will be able to see another sooner; and if you feel you need to see a doctor today, the Duty Doctor will always be able to speak to you to discuss the most appropriate way to deal with your problem.

We trust you will be able to understand this change, which is not a decision taken in isolation but one laid down in statute. The change reflects the trend towards Primary Care Teams of healthcare specialists - a response to ever increasing medical capabilities and patient expectations which no doctor, even if present 24 hours a day 7 days a week, could effectively and safely manage alone.

End of Life Care

If someone dies at home you must call your doctor who will certify the death. Unless the doctor decides to refer the matter to the Coroner, he or she will prepare a Medical Certificate within the next day or so.

This certificate must be taken to the local Registrar of Births or Deaths within five days of the death. Your funeral director will give you the Registrar’s address and opening hours and will explain what you have to do when you get there.

The Registrar will require personal details of the deceased such as their date and place of birth and death, a marriage certificate if this applies, and will want to know whether they were receiving a pension or any welfare benefits. The Registrar will then issue the Death Certificate and the notification of disposal which should be given to the funeral director.

You will also need more than one copy of the Death Certificate, probably as many as five altogether. You will need a copy for the Will, for any pension claims, insurance policies and investments.