A blood pressure test checks if your blood pressure is healthy, or if it’s high or low.
Having this quick test could save your life.
If you do not want to take your blood pressure using the machine, or if you’ve been asked to request an appointment, please contact the surgery.
For more information, including what your results mean, see NHS advice on blood pressure tests.
The NHS Health Check is a free check-up of your overall health.
As we get older, we have a higher risk of developing certain health conditions. These check-ups help find ways to lower this risk.
An NHS Health Check can tell you if you’re at higher risk of getting certain health problems. This includes:
During the check-up, we’ll discuss how to reduce your risk and help you make a plan to stay healthy.
If you’re over 65, we’ll also talk about the signs and symptoms of dementia.
You are eligible for an NHS Health Check every 5 years if you’re between 40 and 74 years of age.
You may get an automatic invitation from the surgery or your local authority.
If you do not get an invite, but think you’re eligible, please contact the practice.
An NHS Health Check takes about 30 minutes. A nurse or healthcare assistant will:
We’ll then give you personalised advice to help you stay healthy.
If you think you are eligible for an NHS Health Check, you can contact the surgery to ask for an appointment.
For more information, read NHS advice about NHS health checks.
If you have been referred for further treatment or tests, you can check on the referral online or contact the surgery.
You can use an online form to contact the surgery about your referral.
Ask about a referral using an online form
The NHS app is a quick way to access NHS services. Using the NHS app means you do not need to enter your personal details each time you contact the surgery. You can read more about the app on the NHS website.
You will need the NHS app or your NHS account login details.
Check referral using NHS account
We can usually only give information about a referral over the phone directly to the patient. This is for privacy reasons.
We may be able to speak to someone else if the patient:
For more information, read NHS advice about referrals for specialist care.
If you have asthma, you should check your treatment regularly.
Next steps include things like:
You can talk to our nursing team for:
Asthma + Lung UK has guidance on:
If you have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), you should check regularly that you’re getting the right treatment.
Next steps include things like:
COPD is the name for a group of lung conditions that cause breathing difficulties.
It includes:
The breathing problems tend to get gradually worse over time and can limit your normal activities, although treatment can help keep the condition under control.
COPD is a common condition that mainly affects middle-aged or older adults who smoke. Many people do not realise they have it.
Health and Care Video Library has videos to help manage your COPD and breathing problems.
You should check regularly if your contraceptive pill is still right for you.
Next steps include things like:
It’s useful to know:
You cannot ask for emergency contraception with this service. This is because you may not get your treatment in time.
Instead you should either:
Visit the NHS website guide to where you can get contraception
If you have diabetes, you should check regularly that you’re getting the right treatment.
Next steps include things like:
We also run clinics, which help to prevent complications from diabetes.
Our practice nurse helps with regular monitoring of diabetic control and lifestyle advice. We give annual eye and foot checks, and we may be able to refer you to a dietician for advice with your diet.
Health and Care Video Library has videos to help manage your diabetes.
If you take medicine regularly, you should check it is right at least once a year. This is called a ‘medication review’.
You should have a medication review if:
Next steps include things like:
You need to know:
It’s also useful to know your:
If you have an underactive thyroid, you need to check at least once a year that you’re getting the right treatment and taking the right medicine.
Next steps include things like:
Symptoms of an underactive thyroid include:
These symptoms often feel like other conditions, and they usually develop slowly. This means you may not notice them for years.
Read more about symptoms of an underactive thyroid.
Request an appointment and ask for a blood test.
Read more about testing for an underactive thyroid on the NHS website.
You can treat an underactive thyroid by taking tablets to replace the hormones your thyroid is not making.
Most cases are caused by either:
We provide a range of services and clinics.
Please review our list of non-NHS work that we offer at our GP surgery, which attract a fee. This includes certificates, forms, medical examinations and various travel vaccinations.
When your doctor is asked to give medical information about you in the form of a report, letter or certificate, the request kick starts a series of processes.
This takes time and is not always straightforward or simple to complete. Some of the information is not available easily and will mean the doctor has to sort and select the right information for the request.
The doctor also must establish who is funding this work and if it is not part of their NHS work, agree a fee for this.
Many patients see their doctor as the embodiment of the NHS and all that it provides – free care at the point of delivery. However not all work doctors are asked to do is paid for by the NHS and many GPs are self-employed.
This means they must cover their time and costs – staff, buildings, heating, lighting, etc – in the same way as any small business. The NHS only pays for NHS work, any work outside of the NHS must be funded by other means and this is why fees are charged.
Your doctor receives large amounts of request and which is often to do with whether your general health allows you to do something e.g. to work, receive benefits, drive, play sport, attend school, own a house, a firearm or it is for insurance, court or other medico-legal reasons.
All requests will vary in complexity, volume and consistency ranging from signing a certificate which can take minutes, to an in-depth report with an examination that can take hours.
When your doctor signs a certificate or completes a report, it is a condition of remaining on the Medical Register that they only sign what they know to be true.
In order to complete even the simplest of forms, they may have to check your entire medical record (some of which may not be accessible on a computer or on site).
Carelessness or an inaccurate report can have serious consequences for the doctor with the General Medical Council (the doctors’ regulatory body) or even the Police.
Your doctor is inundated with work. They have to balance their time with treating the sick, keeping their practice afloat and making sure they are doing all of this safely and within their professional duties as a doctor.
With certain exceptions written within their contract, doctors do not have to carry out non-NHS work. However, many choose to for the benefit of you and other families they treat.
Where a doctor chooses to undertake the work, we advise them to inform and always agree a fee in advance of undertaking work.
Should their volume of work prove to be greater or more complex than expected, the doctor will contact you to discuss how to proceed.
– Not all documents need a signature by a doctor and can be done by other professionals. Please check the form and accompanying guidance as you may get a quicker response that way.
– If you have several forms requiring completion, present them all at once and ask your doctor if he or she is prepared to complete them at the same time to speed up the process.
– Do not expect your GP to process forms overnight. Urgent requests may mean that a doctor has to make special arrangements to process the form quickly, and this will cost more.
– Don’t book an appointment with your doctor to complete forms without checking with your doctor’s administrative staff as to whether you need to or not.
If you’ve had a recent test, you can view your results online or contact the surgery.
You can get results for things like:
When you attend a test of any kind, you will be told how long you should expect to wait for the results. This is a guideline, and we ask that you wait this time before checking for your results.
Please note that we have a strict policy regarding confidentiality and data protection. We will only give test results to the person they relate to unless that person has given prior permission for their release or if they’re not capable of understanding them.
There are different ways you can access the results of tests that have been done at our GP surgery.
Please note that the results of tests carried out during hospital visits are not normally sent to the practice.
If a doctor asks you to have a repeat test, it is usually because:
Please do not worry if the doctor has asked you for a repeat test. The doctor will speak to you or request to see you directly if they need to discuss the results.
A fit note is a written statement from your doctor. It says if you’re fit to work or not.
It’s also sometimes called a ‘sick note’.
You usually do not need a fit note if you’re off work sick for seven days or less. However, check your employer’s policy on this. It should say how many days you can be off sick before you need to give proof from your doctor. It should be enough to give proof yourself when you go back to work. This is called ‘self-certification’.
When you go back to work you may need to fill in a self-certification form.
This includes things like:
These dates may include days you do not normally work, for example a weekend or bank holiday.
Some employers have their own self-certification form. If yours does not, use HMRC: Employees Statement of Sickness on GOV.UK.
You may have to pay if you get a fit note when you’re off sick for seven days or less. To find out more, please ask at reception or go to the NHS website guidance on fit notes.
If you’re off work sick for more than seven days, your employer will usually ask you to get a fit note from your doctor.
The note can say that:
The seven days include days that you don’t normally work. So when you work out how long you’ve been off sick, include weekends and bank holidays.
You do not have to pay for a fit note if you’re off sick for more than seven days.
If you need a fit note select the link below.
If you’re getting hospital treatment, ask for one from the doctor at your hospital.
We may ask you to make an appointment, either in person or on the phone.
If you are registered with our GP surgery, you can access some health services online. This means you can do some tasks when it is better for you and avoid telephoning the practice.
We’ll review your answers during practice hours and contact you to make sure you get the right help.
This could be:
You need to be registered with the practice to use this service.
Below are some of the main online services we use in our GP surgery:
You can find out more about the NHS App, how to download it and get support here (https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-app/).
You’ll need to provide extra proof of who you are to get full access to your NHS account.
If you’re a patient at our practice you can use the new NHS App, a simple and secure way to access a range of NHS services on your smartphone or tablet.
You can still contact the practice by phone or in person, this is just another option, which other patients have found is more convenient and saves them time. More information including “how to” leaflets and videos of patients and why they are using GP online services are available at www.nhs.uk/gponlineservices
Your NHS account allows you to access your services through the NHS App or website. It also allows you to access authorised apps such as Airmid and PATCHS.
To have an NHS account, you must be aged 13 or over and registered with an NHS GP surgery in England or the Isle of Man.
You can find out more about how to set up your NHS login, you can visit the NHS website: How to set up NHS login
You may find it easier to have an app on your phone to access your account but you don’t have to. If you prefer, you can access your NHS account online: Log in – NHS App Online (service.nhs.uk)
You’ll be asked to fill out an online form about your request.
You need to be registered with the practice to use this service.
If you have not used our online services before you will need to:
