Please See Below for Practice News, Updates & Information on Local & National Health Campaigns.

Please visit www.england.nhs.uk/news for the latest news from NHS England.

April 2024

The NHS will be contacting eligible patients for covid vaccinations this Spring.

Please speak to our reception team if you need to check or update your contact details.

Please see the eligibility criteria and more detailed information on the vaccination at nhs.uk/conditions/covid-19/covid-19-vaccination.

Get information about NHS COVID-19 services such as testing, research and calling 119, by visiting nhs.uk/nhs-services/covid-19-services.

March 2024

The MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine is a safe and effective combined vaccine.

It protects against 3 serious illnesses: measles, mumps and rubella (german measles). These highly infectious conditions can easily spread between unvaccinated people, and can lead to serious problems including meningitis, hearing loss and problems during pregnancy.

There has been a recent increase in Measles cases in London. Those who have never received a measles vaccine (MMR) are at risk. Please contact reception if you need to check your vaccination status.

Please visit nhs.uk/conditions/measles/ for more information on measles.

Please visit nhs.uk/conditions/vaccinations/mmr-vaccine/ for more information on the MMR vaccine.

Please click here for details on drop-in MMR clinics in April 2024.

February 2024

Pharmacists can give you advice on a range of conditions and suggest medicines that can help. They may also be able to offer treatment and prescription medicine for some conditions, without you needing to see a GP.

Conditions they can treat as part of Pharmacy First are:

• earache (aged 1 to 17 years)
• impetigo (aged 1 year and over)
• infected insect bites (aged 1 year and over)
• shingles (aged 18 years and over)
• sinusitis (aged 12 years and over)
• sore throat (aged 5 years and over)
• urinary tract infections or UTIs (women aged 16 to 64 years)

Please visit nhs.uk/thinkpharmacyfirst for more information.

November 2023

Please see the NHS website for winter health advice on;

• Keep warm, keep well
• Hypothermia
• Sore or dry lips
• Common cold
• Influenza (flu)
• Norovirus (vomiting bug)
• Seasonal affective disorder (SAD)
• Winter tiredness
• Winter sunlight
• Safer sleep in winter for babies
• Staying well in winter if you have a long-term lung condition

October 2023

The South East London Cancer Alliance can offer information and guidance if you're a cancer patient, carer, friend or family member.

On their website, they have a range of information and resources designed to help patients and families at all stages of cancer screening, diagnosis, and beyond.

Please see this short film regarding their work.

Please visit selca.nhs.uk for more information.

June 2023

Cervical Screening Awareness Week is an annual event, taking place from 19th to 24th June this year.

The HPV vaccination, cervical screening, and treatment for cell changes can all help prevent cervical cancer, and Jo's Trust are working to increase awareness and uptake. Please visit jostrust.org.uk for more information on this awareness week.

Please visit nhs.uk/conditions/cervical-screening for more information on the cervical screening.

June 2023

Moles are small, coloured spots on the skin. Most people have them and they're usually nothing to worry about unless they change size, shape or colour.

Some moles can be a sign of melanoma, a type of skin cancer. It's important to check your moles regularly for any changes.

The ABCDE checklist should help you tell the difference between a normal mole and melanoma.

Please visit nhs.uk/conditions/moles for more information.

June 2023

Please see the NHS website for summer health advice on;

• Sunscreen and sun safety
• Keeping your baby safe in the sun
• Sunburn
• Heat rash (prickly heat)
• How to get vitamin D from sunlight
• Heatwave: how to cope in hot weather
• Heat exhaustion and heatstroke
• Dehydration
• Sore or dry lips
• Moles

May 2023

Hepatitis C is a virus that affects your liver. It can be cured by taking a course of tablets.

Lots of people have hepatitis C without knowing. Even if you do not know you have it, it can damage your liver and can sometimes lead to life-threatening conditions like liver cancer or liver failure.

You can do a free, confidential hepatitis C test at home. You prick your finger to get some blood and then send the blood to get tested.

Please visit hepctest.nhs.uk for more information about hepatitis c, the testing process, and to order a free test kit to your address.

April 2023

Type 2 diabetes is a common condition that causes the level of sugar (glucose) in the blood to become too high. It can cause symptoms like excessive thirst, needing to pee a lot and tiredness.

It's a lifelong condition that can affect your everyday life. If diagnosed, you may need to change your diet and take regular medication.

Have you been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes? Did you know that a yearly check at the GP surgery can help you manage and live a healthy life with diabetes?

Please see this short film, regarding the diabetes care process.

Please visit nhs.uk/conditions/diabetes for more information on diabetes, and where to get further help and support.

April 2023

April is stress awareness month, which aims to raise awareness of the causes of stress, and the help available for stress related issues. Most people feel stressed sometimes, but if stress is affecting your life, there are things you can try that may help.

Stress can cause many different symptoms. It might affect how you feel physically, mentally, and also how you behave.

Please visit nhs.uk/stress for more information and how to get help. You can also visit Every Mind Matters for further information, and to create a free personalised mind plan.

February 2023

National HIV Testing Week takes place from Monday 6th February until Sunday 12th February 2023. Testing for HIV is free, fast, confidential and simple; you can do it at home with a self-test kit. Most people get HIV from someone who doesn’t know they have it, and testing is the only way to know if you have HIV.

Free HIV test kits are available to anyone over 16 that lives in England. Choose from a lab test (with optional syphilis test) and get results by text, or a rapid self-test you can do yourself.

Pleave visit startswithme.org.uk for more information on HIV and to order a free HIV test.

January 2023

The 4-in-1 pre-school booster vaccine is offered to children from the age of 3 years and 4 months, to boost their protection against 4 different serious conditions: diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough and polio.

The 4-in-1 pre-school vaccine is injected into your child's upper arm. The 4-in-1 pre-school booster not only protects your child against these infections, but also stops them passing the germs on to babies who are too young to be vaccinated against these infections.

It cannot cause any of the infections it protects against. You can still request the pre-school booster if your child has missed a dose.

Please visit nhs.uk/conditions/vaccinations/4-in-1-pre-school-dtap-ipv-booster/ for more information.

January 2023

Patients can now see a GP or Nurse on evenings and weekends, at Woodlands or a local surgery or location, in their Primary Care Network. Please speak to our reception team to find out more and book an appointment (subject to availability).

If you need to change or cancel your evening or weekend appointment, please call the surgery.

If you need to cancel a weekend appointment when we're closed, please call 0208 176 0410.

Please note this phone number can only be used to cancel out of hours appointments, and not to contact the surgery.

October 2022

Breast Cancer Awareness Month takes place every October, and is an annual campaign to raise awareness about the impact of breast cancer, which is the most common type of cancer in the UK.

Please visit breastcancernow.org and breastcanceruk.org.uk for more information on symptoms, prevention, treatment and living with breast cancer.

Please also visit the nhs.uk for information on how you can do a breast self-examination at home.

October 2022

Bexley Stop Smoking Service is available to anyone who wants to stop smoking in Bexley.

They provide free, friendly and effective practical support, as well as offering a full range of evidence-based smoking cessation medications. They can also advise on vaping and can direct you to local vape shops.

For more information, please visit smokefreebexley.co.uk.

Stoptober is a Public Health England initiative that encourages smokers to abstain from smoking for 28 days in October. The 28 smoke-free days are based on the statistic that if you can quit smoking for 28 days, you are 5 times more likely to quit permanently.

Please visit thestoptober.co.uk for more information.

September 2022

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men, but you may not have symptoms with early prostate cancer.

Symptoms of prostate cancer do not usually appear until the prostate is large enough to affect the tube that carries urine from the bladder out of the penis (urethra).

The earlier it is caught, the more likely it is to be cured.

Please visit nhs.uk/conditions/prostate-cancer for more information.

Please visit prostatecanceruk.org to check your risk in 30 seconds.

July 2022

In addition to the GP surgery, certain pharmacies in South East London offer free NHS blood pressure checks. Having your blood pressure checked at a pharmacy is quick and easy and often does not require an appointment.

A blood pressure check usually takes around 10 minutes in the pharmacy consultation room with the community pharmacist. Depending on your blood pressure reading, you may be reassured that you have a normal blood pressure or be referred to your GP for appropriate management. The pharmacist will explain any next steps if necessary.

There is also a self-service blood pressure monitor in the surgery waiting room. This is a walk-in service, no appointment required. Please speak to our reception team for more information.

Find a pharmacy that offers free blood pressure checks

July 2022

Bowel cancer is a general term for cancer that begins in the large bowel. Depending on where the cancer starts, bowel cancer is sometimes called colon or rectal cancer.

Bowel cancer is one of the most common types of cancer diagnosed in the UK. Most people diagnosed with it are over the age of 60.

Please visit nhs.uk/conditions/bowel-cancer for more information on the symptoms, causes, treatment and living with bowel cancer.

In England, everyone aged 60 to 74 who's registered with a GP is eligible for NHS bowel cancer screening. It involves using a home testing kit to send off some poo samples to be tested for blood. This can help detect bowel cancer before symptoms appear.

Please visit nhs.uk/conditions/bowel-cancer-screening for more information about the NHS bowel cancer screening checks.

May 2022

My Planned Care supports people waiting for a hospital appointment, operation or treatment, and gives them advice and support while they wait. This includes access to average waiting times at their hospital, and other useful advice about local services.

The site is updated weekly with further advice and information on how to manage pain, keep healthy, look after your mental health, access financial help and other local support services.

Please visit myplannedcare.nhs.uk for more information.

February 2022

Teen Life is a six session programme, for parents/carers of young people aged 10 to 16 years on the autism spectrum.

Developed by the National Autistic Society, the Teen Life programme aims to empower parents and supporting professionals, to understand more about how autism is experienced by teenagers.

Please click here for more information on applying.

February 2022

There is a new service at Lewisham Hospital every Friday, from 9.30am - 12pm, offering support to patients who have recieved a cancer diagnosis. There are various areas of support offered for patients that would like to speak with a specialist, or who would like to be signposted to other services.

This service is available for patients who have received their cancer diagnosis at either Lewisham Hospital or Queen Elizabeth Hospital. This is a drop-in service, no appointment required.

Please click here for more information.

December 2021

The NHS operate a Zero Tolerance Policy with regard to violence and abuse and the practice has the right to remove violent patients from the list with immediate effect in order to safeguard practice staff, patients and other persons.

Violence in this context includes actual or threatened physical violence or verbal abuse which leads to fear for a person’s safety. In this situation we will notify the patient in writing of their removal from the list and record in the patient’s medical records the fact of the removal and the circumstances leading to it.

In certain situations, the police may be called to remove a person(s) from the surgery.

July 2021

Please ensure that you have read your blood test form on collection to check the date you are required to have the blood test, and any other clinical details.

You cannot currently walk-in for a blood test at the hospital.

You can book your blood test appointment online by visiting lewishamandgreenwich.nhs.uk.

Alternativly you can call 0208 333 3217 to book a blood test with the Phlebotomy Booking Service. You will get through to the phlebotomy call centre, with advisors able to book appointments at all available locations. The call centre is open Monday to Friday between 8am and 4pm.

May 2021

Please make sure we have your up-to-date contact information. Please call the surgery on 020 8300 1680 to update your details, or complete an online consultation. All patients aged 16 or over are responsible for managing their own healthcare, so please make sure we can contact you.

April 2021

Please can we remind patients that everyone 16 years or over needs to contact the surgery for their own results and medical information. Due to patient confidentiality, we cannot give information about any patients 16 years or over to anyone else.

If you would like to give permission for other person(s) to access your medical records, please fill in this form and return it to surgery. We will then add to your notes that you have given written permission for this access. This permission can also be removed at any time by request.

Can I speak to a GP about someone else's health?

February 2021

A new service is now live to help you find your NHS number. This service is for anyone living in England who has forgotten or does not know their NHS number.

You can opt for the number to be sent to you by text, email or letter. Please visit nhs.uk to use this service.

Janaury 2021

Please can we remind patients that all samples must be brought into surgery before 12.30pm.

We cannot keep any samples in the surgery overnight. Any samples brought to the surgery after 12.30pm will not be accepted.

All samples must be clearly labelled with patients' full name and date of birth. The time when the sample was taken must also be added. All samples must be handed in a clear plastic bag.

Samples not labelled correctly will not be sent off or analysed by the laboratory.

Please seal all containers tightly, samples that leak will also not be tested.

For all test results, please call the surgery between 11am - 4pm any weekday, and select line 2.

We expect sample and blood results to be actioned within 5 working days. Scans and X-rays will take much longer.

It is the responsibility of the patient to contact the surgery for their results.