Forrest Medical Centre

The Young Persons Advisory Group are looking for new children to join their group and get involved. See the poster for details of how to get involved 👍

Bereavement Care Survey As a practice we have been looking at the quality of the end of life care we offer to our patients. Part of this is focusing on how we support carers and those bereaved. If you have experienced a recent (or not so recent) bereavement we'd be very grateful if you would consider completing the online survey. The survey is strictly confidential and we will try and use all responses to shape the service we offer. https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/6LPBBPN< br>

Just to let everyone know that the power is back on and so the phone lines are working again. Remember though, if you are calling to request a repeat prescription - please call the POD rather than us (as we no longer take prescription requests on the phone and they will be able to deal with your request much quicker than we can). Thanks 😁👍🏻

PLEASE BE AWARE - we have had a power cut in the local area so the phones are not working properly. You will still be put into a queue, but the calls cannot be answered as they are not ringing through in the office - so please don't hold for long periods of time. We will update this information once power is restored.

Thought this might be interesting to share - some research done about GP Receptionists by Dr Ward, a senior lecturer at York University. Our staff do care and they do try - we might not get it right 100% of the time, but we never intend to get it wrong....
"(The receptionists) detached manner is not intended to intimidate or belittle patients; it's actually a form of protection, to help them avoid emotional burn out. I discovered this after my colleague Dr Robert McMurray fr...
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REPEAT PRESCRIPTIONS - changes from Jan 2020
We have been getting a lot of patients complaining about having to wait on the phone for long periods of time for anything from booking an appointment to chasing a referral to ordering a repeat prescription. We have listened to your feedback and so will be changing the way you order your repeat prescriptions from 2nd January 2020!
From the start of the New Year we will ask all our patients who want to call to order their repeat to ...use the NHS Prescription Ordering Direct (POD) service. The POD can be contacted between 8am and 5pm, Mon - Fri each week on 024 7624 6072.
The NHS POD service has been successfully running in the city for many years now. It is provided on behalf of the GP practice, by NHS Coventry & Rugby Clinical Commissioning Group. Your call will be answered by a dedicated, experienced and fully trained call handler who will have access to your medical record in order to process your prescription request. The call handler will only access your personal information relevant to your request. Your personal information is secure and confidential in line with the Data Protection Act 1998. You will be asked each time you telephone if you consent to the NHS POD accessing your medical record.
Patients can still choose to use the online services to order prescriptions and can still drop the repeat slips into the surgery - this service is just for those patients wishing to order items over the phone.
For more information about the POD and how to use it, please collect a leaflet from reception.
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We have started our annual Christmas raffle - this year, raising money for Coventry MIND. Tickets are 20p each of £1.00 for a strip. If you want a chance of winning this hamper and all the Christmas goodies it contains, please pop in and get your ticket(s)! Good luck 😁

The death of a close friend or loved one can be devastating. At Forrest Medical Centre we want to understand what we may be doing well and what areas we could improve in. We are running a short patient bereavement questionnaire, so if you have suffered a bereavement then please take the time to complate a survery next time you are in the building to help us get a picture of what our patients appreciated as well as what they may need or want. Thank you.

FLU UPDATE - we have another flu clinic set up for Saturday 2nd November which patients can now book in to. This session is for both under 65 (at-risk) patients and over 65 patients. Please give us a call and book yourself a slot if you are entitled to the flu jab. (Please note - we do not have the nasal flu vaccine for children yet, there is a national issue with getting these at present. We are hoping these will be delivered sometime ths week).

NASAL FLU UPDATE - we are aware that letters have been sent out asking patients to call to book in for their 2-3 year old children to get the nasal flu. Please be aware that GP surgeries are unable to order this vaccine from the NHS until the w/c 14th October so no GP surgery has these available yet. We are not sure when we will receive delivery of these - it may not be until Wed 23rd Oct, it will depend what day of the w/c 14th Oct that they become available to us (we receive our delivery of vaccines from the central depot on a Wednesday). Really sorry for the delay but this is completely out of our control - we will post an update when these become available.

Update for who can sign a passport application and photo - doctors are no longer allowed to (but there are plenty of other occupations that can do this). Please see the link ...!

Many of you will be very saddened to learn of the death of one of our former trainees Dr Helen Lewis. Dr Lewis was a very kind, caring and compassionate doctor who was deeply conscientious. She was respected and valued by staff and patients alike. We extend our deepest sympathy to her family at this sad time.

At the recent GP Alliance Awards evening that celebrates outstanding achievements and work within the NHS in Coventry and Rugby, staff from Forrest Medical Centre won in three different categories. A big well done to Elaine O'Brien, who won a Highly Commended Award in the 'Inspiring Nurse' category, Dr Kate Day won the 'Clinical Innovation' Award for her outstanding work in improving the quality of care for palliative care for patients and families, and Matthew Grant won the 'Outstanding Achievement' Award for the help and support he has provided to practices across the city. A big well done to these individuals - and to the other staff that we have here at the surgery who are all part of the excellent team that we have 👍😀

FOUND: This little guy (or gal!) has been found in the waiting room here at the surgery! If anyone is missing their best friend, please come to reception and we will happily re-unite this bear with their owner 🧸

Wellbeing Workshops. IAPT is a service that supports people with common mental health problems such as stress, anxiety and depression. There is a range of one hour workshops to provide information about looking after your mental health and accessing further support. Workshops will include: Introduction to Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT); Worry Management; Sleep Manage,ent; Long Term Health Conditions and Mood; and Mindfulness.
The workshops will be held at diffeent venues... across Warwickshire, Coventry, Rugby and Solihull. No need to book, just turn up.
For details on the next available course please visit www.covwarkpt.nhs.uk/iapt or call 024 7667 1090
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Flu 2019...!! Don't forget that we have a couple of Saturday flu sessions in September (14th & 28th Sept) for patients aged 65+. We do not recieve the flu vaccine for those under 65 in the 'at risk' groups until early October (at which time we will then also put on some Saturday sessions for these too). So, if you are aged 65+ then please contact reception on 02476672277 and get your flu vaccine booked. Thanks

Flu Update! We will be putting on a couple of Saturday flu sessions in September (14th & 28th Sept) for patients aged 65+. We do not recieve the flu vaccine for those under 65 in the 'at risk' groups until early October (at which time we will then also put on some Saturday sessions for these too). So, if you are aged 65+ then please contact reception and get your flu vaccine booked. Thanks

Get your kids moving this summer - visit the Change4life website for ideas and suggestions on how to help you and your children be more active! 😁