Noticeboard

Your GP practice is open as normal, but certain measures are still place to ensure vulnerable patients are kept safe. GP services remain very busy, delivering more appointments than ever before. Telephone your GP practice and you will be advised accordingly and will receive a telephone or video appointment. Following this you will be advised of the next steps.

If you’re looking to order repeat prescriptions, you don’t need to call your GP practice to do this. You can now do this online or via email to doctors.rowland@nhs.net

If you are feeling unwell or if you have any health symptoms that you are worried about, please call us to make an appointment on 0121 706 2626

You can find further information and advice via the following link 

Your health - Birmingham and Solihull CCG

Latest News

NHS Digital (NHSD) extract update as of July 2021

The current NHS Digital (NHSD) extract of GP data for Research purposes (known as the GPDPR) has been delayed due to NHSD wishing to review the way in which this data will be collected, to conduct more public involvement and information about the plans and change the way in which patients can opt out of the extract of their GP data.

 Currently the only way to opt out is to complete a Type 1 opt out form and return this to the practice by the 1st September.  However, this extract will not be taken until the NHSD have changed the way it will take the data and respect the patient’s choice for using their data.  NHSD are introducing the following changes to the opt out process which will mean that patients will be able to change their opt-out status at any time::-

  • Patients do not need to register a Type 1 opt-out by 1st September to ensure their GP data will not be uploaded.

  • NHS Digital will create the technical means to allow GP data that has previously been uploaded to the system via the GPDPR collection to be deleted when someone registers a Type 1 opt-out.

  • The plan to retire Type 1 opt-outs will be deferred for at least 12 months while we get the new arrangements up and running and will not be implemented without consultation with the RCGP, the BMA and the National Data Guardian. 

This means that you can opt out at any time in the future and NHSD will delete data that they already have taken for research purposes, the deadline of the 01/09/2021 has been delayed until a new system of opt out is developed.  Hopefully, this will be a simple centralised approach via the NHS app or NHS website to avoid paper form and administration work for your GP.

 We will update you when we know more about the NHSD plans to change how you can control who has access to your data.

RECENT NEWS REGARDING BUTTON BATTERIES - KEEP CHILDREN SAFE

What are button batteries?

Button batteries - which can also be called LR44 batteries, button cell batteries, or coin batteries - are extremely dangerous to children if swallowed. They can be found in toys, remote controls, car keys, musical greetings cards, and small electronic devices such as calculators and weighing scales.

Why are button batteries so dangerous?

Although a child may not choke if they swallow a button battery, the batteries can do serious internal damage. When combined with saliva, the electrical current from the battery produces caustic soda that can burn through the throat or stomach and can cause further damage to other internal organs. The video on this page gives an idea of the sort of damage a button battery can cause.

How many cases have there been?

RoSPA is aware of a number of deaths and some serious injuries in the UK as a result of children swallowing button batteries. In one incident, a child swallowed a battery the size of a 10p coin that became stuck in her throat for four months. Her father only noticed there was something wrong when his daughter would only eat puréed food. When she was taken to hospital, X-rays revealed a watch battery lodged in and burning her oesophagus.

This is one of many cases that have been highlighted in recent years. In 2018, the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch published a report into the death of a child. It made recommendations on the packaging and labelling of batteries and the need to raise awareness of the dangers and treatment of children who have swallowed button batteries.

The danger of button batteries has also been talked about internationally. According to the National Capitol Poison Centre in the USA, there are around 3,500 incidents reported every year where swallowed batteries require urgent treatment. The Queensland Injury Surveillance Unit in Australia also estimates that four children a week are admitted to hospital after swallowing batteries.

How can I keep my child safe from button batteries?

  • The Toy Safety Regulations require toys that use button batteries to have lockable battery compartments. Check that these are secure and undamaged and do not use toys that don’t have lockable compartments. Take care when changing batteries to make sure the compartment is secured afterwards and the old battery is disposed of safely.
  • Be extra vigilant with items including musical greeting cards, flameless candles, remote controls and electronic devices as most of these will not have lockable compartments. RoSPA advises that children should not be allowed to have access to these products if the battery compartment is not secure.
  • Ensure that spare batteries are locked away, and used batteries are disposed of correctly as they can still cause injury. Once they are replaced, store them securely out of reach, and recycle them as soon as possible.

What should I do if my child swallows a button battery?

If you think your child may have swallowed a button battery, seek medical advice immediately. Remember that the saliva in their body will react with the battery and so time is very much of the essence.

It is sometimes difficult to know whether a child has swallowed a button battery. Great Ormond Street Hospital has provided helpful information about the signs you can look for:

  1. Vomiting fresh, bright red blood. If your child does that, you absolutely have to get them immediate medical help.

Other symptoms can include:

  1. Suddenly developing a cough, gag or drooling a lot
  2. Appearing to have a stomach upset or a virus
  3. Being sick
  4. Pointing to their throat or stomach
  5. Having a pain in their tummy, chest or throat
  6. Being tired or lethargic
  7. Being quieter or more clingy than usual or otherwise “not themselves”
  8. Losing their appetite or have a reduced appetite
  9. Not wanting to eat solid food/be unable to eat solid food.

COVID - 19 INFORMATION

Evidencing COVID-19 vaccinations for international travel

Thank you for contacting the surgery enquiring about COVID vaccination certification.

We are unable to issue this certificate at the practice.

Please see the below link for further information.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/demonstrating-your-covid-19-vaccination-status-when-travelling-abroad

Proof of your vaccination status will be available on the NHSapp.

The NHSapp can be downloaded from

https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/nhs-app/id1388411277 - for iphone

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nhs.online.nhsonline - for android

Alternatively, you can call the NHS helpline on 119 (from 17 May) and ask for a letter to be posted to you. This must be at least 5 days after you’ve completed your course of the vaccine, the letter may to take up to 5 days to reach you.

Thank you for your co-operation. 

Accessing Services during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Your local NHS in Birmingham and Solihull is still here for you, but how you access services has changed due to COVID-19.

If you are feeling unwell or if you have any health symptoms that you are worried about, please contact your local GP practice online through their website or call them in the first instance. You can no longer walk-in to your GP practice without an appointment.

If treatment is not possible through an online triage or a telephone consultation, a face-to-face appointment will be arranged for you.

Your local GP is open and fully operational, but these measures have been put in place to maintain and control social distancing and to keep local people and NHS staff safe.

If you are suffering a serious or life-threatening emergency, please call 999 immediately.

Please visit the NHS Birmingham and Solihull CCG website for more information.

If you notice any possible cancer symptoms or any changes that are unusual for you, contact your doctor because early cancer diagnosis saves lives. Due to coronavirus fewer people are contacting their doctor. Your local surgery is ready to help you safely. They can talk to you by phone or video link and can arrange for tests. Whatever happens, tell your doctor if your symptoms get worse or don’t get better. Early diagnosis saves lives. Contact your GP now or go to CRUK.org/coronavirus for more information.

Contacting your GP

The coronavirus outbreak means that GPs are talking to people on the phone or online. This is to reduce the risk of coronavirus to them and their patients. When you speak to them, they will ask about your symptoms and tell you if you need to go into the surgery to see a GP.

They may suggest that you keep an eye on your symptoms and arrange another appointment to check in with them after a certain amount of time. Make sure you know when and how to contact them. And contact them again if your symptoms get worse or don’t get better.

Getting the most out of your telephone appointment

When you speak to the doctor, it can be difficult to remember everything you want to say especially on the phone. These tips will help you get the most out of your appointment.

Tips

  • Find a quiet part of the house to take the call – your doctor will hopefully give you an idea of what time of day they will call you.
  • Ask someone to listen in for support - they could also ask questions and help you remember what the doctor says
  • Before the call write down your symptoms including when they started, when they happen and how often you have them.
  • Write down if anything makes them worse or better.
  • Tell them if you are worried about cancer in particular.
  • Tell them if you have any family history of cancer.
  • Ask them to explain anything you don’t understand.

Questions you might want to ask your GP

  • Do I need to see a specialist? Is it urgent?
  • When will I see them?
  • Where will I see them?
  • Will I find out about my appointments by post or telephone?
  • Do I need tests? What will they involve?
  • How long should I expect to wait?
  • Where can I find out more about tests?
  • Do I have to do anything in to prepare for this test? When will I get the results and who will tell me?
  • When will I get the results and who will tell me?

Your GP might not be able to answer all of your questions. They will tell you what they can at this point. Not knowing is difficult to cope with and can make you anxious.

Seeing a specialist and having cancer tests

GPs can still make urgent referrals to specialists or for tests if they’re worried you might have cancer. The hospital should contact you to tell you more about your appointment. Your first appointment might be a telephone appointment with the specialist doctor.

Hospital teams might need to prioritise tests and appointments so they can see those most in need. They will base any decisions on the symptoms people have and the risk of them being cancer. They will talk to you about the possible risks of delaying a test until the risks of COVID-19 are over.

If you need to wait to have tests your team will put you on a list to make sure you do have the test when it is possible.

If they don't think you need any tests or a referral or they want to delay it

Questions you might want to ask:

  • Can you explain why I don’t need to have tests or see a specialist?
  • Is there anything I can do to help myself?
  • Do I need to see you again?
  • Who do I contact if my symptoms continue or get worse, especially during the night or at weekends?

Coronavirus Outbreak

We at Rowlands Road Surgery need your help so that we can continue to keep the practice open and to be able to offer our services to you, the patients.

For the latest and most up-to-date coronavirus information please visit nhs.uk/coronavirus

Stay at home if you have coronavirus symptoms

Stay at home if you have either:

  • a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
  • a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)

Do not go to a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital.

NHS 111 online coronavirus service

Use the 111 online coronavirus service to find out what to do. Only call 111 if you cannot get help online.

Sick Notes

If you are requesting a sick note to cover a period of absence from work due to coronavirus potential symptoms or self-isolation requirements, this is obtained via NHS 111 Isolation Note request

If you have had surgery or have been in hospital or fracture clinic, the sick note should be provided by the hospital team.

How can you help us to help you?

Please be aware we will be attempting to reduce footfall in the practice in the coming weeks so that we can attempt to limit the spread of the virus to both protect our patients and staff. To do this we are making a few temporary changes to the system:

  • We will only ask people to come to the surgery if it is absolutely essential for them to be seen. The vast majority of consultations will be done over the telephone
  • We hope that you use the Patient Access app on your phone or via the online website. If you do not, we will be encouraging you to both sign up to be able to do this, and mandating that all patients nominate a pharmacy that we can send their prescription to on completion. This will mean you will not need to come back into the surgery
  • We are encouraging you to either request your urgent appointments through our website or on the phone. Please do not come into the surgery to request an appointment or anything else unless absolutely necessary.

We will do our best to keep the practice running as normal as is possible, but to do this we will need your help with the things mentioned above. We also ask for your understanding that the Practice is going to come under a lot of pressure, so to please only get in touch with us if you feel it is absolutely necessary

Useful links

Doctors of the World are really pleased to be able to share with you Coronavirus (COVID-19) advice for patients in different languages, which were produced in partnership with the British Red Cross, Migrant Help and Clear Voice:

SEE BELOW for all languages

አማርኛ Amharic

বোাংলো BENGALI

ह िंदी

کورونا وائرس (Covid19)سے متعلق رہنمائ.

Soomaali SOMALI

Shqip ALBANIAN

Jezyk Polski

ENGLISH

Latest News... February 2020

Public Health Advice to People Currently Resident in the UK

Travellers from Wuhan and Hubei Province

If you have travelled from Wuhan or Hubei Province to the UK in the last 14 days you should immediately:

  • stay indoors and avoid contact with other people as you would with the flu
  • call NHS 111 to inform them of your recent travel to the area

Please follow this advice even if you do not have symptoms of the virus.

Travellers from elsewhere in China

If you have travelled from elsewhere in China (but not Macao or Hong Kong) to the UK in the last 14 days and develop symptoms of cough, fever or shortness of breath, you should immediately:

  • stay indoors and avoid contact with other people as you would with the flu
  • call NHS 111 to inform them of your recent travel to the country

Please follow this advice even if your symptoms are minor.

Coronavirus Public Information Poster

Latest News... February 2019

Measles cases at highest for 20 years in Europe, as anti-vaccine movement grows

A climate of doubt about vaccine safety is putting lives at risk, experts warn

A measles vaccination being administered. Populist politicians, from the US to Italy, Poland and France, have jumped on the anti-vaccine bandwagon.

A growing anti-vaccine movement in Europe, fuelled by social media and anti-establishment populists, is putting lives at risk and may be to blame for measles outbreaks surging to a 20-year high, health experts are warning.

A fresh Guardian analysis of WHO data shows that measles cases in Europe will top 60,000 this year - more than double that of 2017 and the highest this century. There have been 72 deaths, twice as many as in 2017.

Health experts warn that vaccine sceptics are driving down immunisation rates for measles, HPV against cervical cancer, flu and other diseases - and that their opinions are increasingly being amplified by social media and by rightwing populists equally sceptical of medical authorities.

The European Union’s health commissioner, Vytenis Andriukaitis, accused rightwing populist politicians of irresponsibility, peddling “fake news” about vaccine safety and stoking the climate of doubt.Andriukaitis, a former heart surgeon, said he was very worried, adding: “Not just me – all of scientific society is concerned – epidemiologists, paediatricians, infectious disease experts and a lot of health ministers.“It is unimaginable that we have deaths because of measles – children dying because of measles. We promised that by 2020 Europe would be measles free.”

Seth Berkley, the head of the global vaccine alliance Gavi, said scepticism was as infectious as a disease. He said: “It is very hard to inoculate against, given there is no stable authority in the world right now, where institutions and facts are being questioned routinely and lying is OK.”.

“We’re in a very vulnerable place right now,” said Heidi Larson, the director of the Vaccine Confidence Project at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

“There’s more hyperbole in the US. But I don’t know a country in the world that doesn’t have some questioning going on,” she said. Different vaccines trigger opposition in different countries, from MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) to the flu vaccine to HPV against the virus that causes most cervical cancers.

The World Health Organization, the EU and the US have all set up groups to investigate the causes of vaccine hesitancy and look for ways to help reassure people. Larsen said: “The reason WHO changed their tune about how important and serious this is was because they had so many member states coming to them and saying: can you help us.

Populist rightwing politicians, from the US to Italy, Poland and France, have jumped on the anti-vaccine bandwagon, supporting the sceptics and championing the right of parents not to immunise their children in countries where it is mandatory before starting school.

PLEASE CLICK THE BELOW LINK FOR THE FULL ARTICLE.....

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/dec/21/measles-cases-at-highest-for-20-years-in-europe-as-anti-vaccine-movement-grows

Latest News - September 2018

Image result for extended access ohpTimes are changing

Times are changing Evening and weekend appointments are available from mid-September 2018 at Harlequin Surgery for patients who are registered with Rowlands Road Surgery: 

Appointments must be booked in advance through your own GP practice and are available with a range of clinicians including GPs, nurses and health care assistants.

Appointments will be available:

Monday 6.30pm - 8pm

Tuesday 6.30pm - 8pm

Wednesday 6.30pm - 8pm

Thursday 6.30pm - 8pm

Friday 6.30pm - 8pm

Saturday morning only

Sunday not available

Harlequin Surgery 160 Shard End Crescent, Shard End, B34 7BP

Times are changing information leaflet

Latest News - August 2018

Latest News - May 2018

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a new law that determines how your personal data is processed and kept safe, and the legal rights that you have in relation to your own data.

Please visit our page on GDPR where you can find further information on this

Image result for gdpr

Have your say – join our Patient Group

Care Quality Commission – read our latest inspection report

Health News from the BBC and the NHS

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