A "Thank You" to Our Patients (published online Sept 3rd)

During the last 18 months, the whole world has been rocked by Covid-19 and it has been a challenging time.

We wanted to say a huge thank you to all of our patients for your kindness, understanding and support during the pandemic. We decided early on that we wanted to make sure our patients were always able to access their GP when they needed to, and although we did encourage telephone and video consultations, our doors were never locked. We are proud of the service we offered during the national lockdowns and we hope you felt as supported by us as we did by you.

As things start to return to normal, there is no doubt that we are busier than we have ever been and we are receiving an unprecedented number of contacts from our patients at the moment. We are available to help you via a telephone or video consultation, in a face-to-face appointment and by way of our website contact forms, and you should not hesitate to contact us if you need help from a doctor or a nurse.

We are able to offer home visits to patients who are housebound or too unwell to come to the surgery. If you or someone you care for needs to be seen at home, please try and contact us before 11am so we can allocate a doctor to see you. You may be contacted by the doctor over the phone first and visits normally take place in the afternoon. Please note that this is not a service for patients who have transport problems. If you do need help with getting to the surgery you can contact Farncombe Good Neighbours on 07531 888398 (call between 10am and 12noon, Mon-Fri for more information).

Please do bear in mind that there are some healthcare needs that can be looked after outside of the surgery. Many of our patients are unwell and need to contact us to get the appropriate medical care, and sometimes these patients are having to wait whilst we manage other, often less pressing, queries that could be resolved by other local services and so it is important that we make good use of these resources and we really appreciate your help with this.

Please have a look at the list of resources below, and see if they might be right for you before you contact the surgery. We are definitely not turning anyone away and we will always help our patients, but there are a lot of other resources available and sometimes they can offer a more specialised level of care than a GP can.

Unwell Babies and Children

If your child is unwell, you can use this document to assess who is best to help you. You can also visit www.healthysurrey.org.uk/children-and-families or call the Surrey-wide 0-19 advice line on 01883 340 922. The lines are open Monday to Friday from 8am until 5pm and the service offers support to parents and carers of babies, young children and teenagers, on all aspects of baby and child health, development and parenting.

Minor Injuries

The Minor Injuries Unit at Haslemere Hospital operates from 9am – 5pm Monday to Friday. The unit can offer advice and treatment for bites and stings, cuts and grazes, minor burns and scalds and minor eye or ear injuries including the removal of foreign bodies. They can help with minor head injuries, removal of splinters, sprains and strains, suspected fractures/broken bones and neck pain.

The service is nurse-led and should not be used for life threatening injuries, and is for adults and children aged 2 years and older.

You can also visit your local Pharmacist for advice regarding medication including side-effects and advice regarding new medication. The Pharmacist can also offer advice and treat a range of conditions and minor injuries including aches & pains, a sore throat, coughs, colds & flu, earache, cystitis, skin rashes and teething. You can obtain emergency contraception from your pharmacist as well as advice on stopping smoking.

Eye Problems

Many of the local opticians offer a walk-in service for eye complaints and often they are better-equipped than we are in the surgery. The optician will be able to help with red eyes or eyelids, dry, gritty or uncomfortable eyes, irritation & inflammation of the eye, significant sticky or watery discharge from the eye, recently occurring flashes or floaters, ingrowing eyelashes, recent & sudden reduced vision, and eye pain. They can also refer on to the hospital if needed. You can be seen at the following opticians:

I Spy – 67 High Street, Godalming – 01483 414168

Boots Opticians – 33 High Street, Godalming – 01483 425087

Chandlers – 40 High Street, Godalming – 01483 418020

Specsavers – 23 Friary Street, Guildford – 01483 452 225

If you are registered with a GP in the Guildford and Waverley area, you can use this free service. It is for people of all ages although children under 16 must be accompanied to their appointment by a parent or guardian.

Dental Problems / Toothache

All dental issues should be dealt with by your dentist; unfortunately GPs are unable to offer help or advice. Quite often we are contacted with requests for painkillers or antibiotics for dental problems but these must be prescribed by your dentist. If you are not registered with a dental practice, you can visit https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-dentist for a list of local practices, or phone 111 for urgent dental advice.

Physiotherapy

A “First Contact Physiotherapist” is available for patients with some musculoskeletal problems and these appointments can be booked through reception instead of seeing a GP. The physiotherapist will offer advice and can refer to further physio sessions if required. You can find out more about this service, which is based at The Mill Medical Practice, on our website - https://www.binscombe.net/single-post/could-a-physiotherapist-help-you

There are many more resources available to our patients – for more information you can visit the Patient Areas page on our website.

If you think you are having a heart attack or a stroke, if you are bleeding heavily, gasping for breath, if someone is unconscious or having a seizure, you should call 999 as soon as possible. Calling the GP first could delay treatment in these instances.

If you need urgent help from a GP outside of surgery hours, please call 111.