Enhanced
services
The information that follows
concerns services we provide over and above
what the NHS considers to be essential.
We have agreed with our local Primary Care
Trust (PCT) that we will provide these services
and receive funding for doing so.
Access to general medical
services
The NHS Plan stated that
“by 2004, all patients will be able
to see a primary care professional within
24 hours and a GP within 48 hours”.
By agreeing to undertake this enhanced service
we committed ourselves to meeting these
targets. The following conditions apply:
-
We must to offer
access to a GP, not necessarily the
GP of choice
-
The 24 / 48 hour
targets do not include weekends –
48 hours from Friday would be the following
Tuesday
-
We must continue
to offer patients the possibility of
booking appointments further ahead if
they wish to
Childhood immunisations
This service rewards the
Practice for ensuring that as many children
as possible receive immunisations (click
here for more information on the immunisations
given). The NHS believes that this service
provides a cost-effective means of ensuring
children are protected from serious diseases.
The funding we get depends on the percentage
of children that receive the full course
of immunisations.
Influenza immunisation
The purpose of this service
is to provide for the vaccination of people
aged over 65 or in other groups considered
to be most at risk from this disease. This
is to reduce the serious morbidity and mortality
from influenza by immunising those most
likely to have a serious or complicated
illness should they develop influenza. This
can avert the need for people to go to hospital.
Click
here for more information on influenza immunisations.
To secure funding we must ensure at least
70% of our patients aged over 65 receive
the immunisation.
Minor surgery
The purpose of this service
is to encourage Practices to take on a wider
range of surgery thus reducing the need
for people to go to hospital. This service is intended to fund more
invasive treatments such as joint injections,
the excision of lumps and other procedures
such as the injection of varicose veins
and piles. In order to qualify for funding
for this service we have to demonstrate
to our PCT that all staff involved are properly
qualified; we have appropriate facilities
and equipment; and we meet certain standards
to assure the quality of the surgery done.
The table below gives a full list of the
minor surgery procedures we undertake together
with details of the people who do it and
how you can make an appointment. The list
includes all activity whether or not it
is part of this enhanced service.
| What |
Who |
Cautery –
use of heat to burn things off your
skin. A local anaesthetic will often
be required. Used for the same sorts
of things as cryotherapy and often
for bigger moles |
Discuss with
doctor before making appointment |
Curettage –
scraping things off your skin. Used
as an alternative to methods mentioned
above. Often followed by cautery
because of bleeding |
Discuss with
doctor before making an appointment |
Injections of
muscles tendons and joints –
most commonly used in joints particularly
the shoulder and sometimes the knee.
Useful for things like tennis elbow |
Discuss with
doctor before making an appointment |
Invasive procedures
including incisions and excisions
– used for things deeper under
the skin like cysts and other lumps.
Will need a local anaesthetic. |
Discuss with
doctor before making an appointment |
Anti-Coagulation Monitoring
Through this service we have undertaken
to monitor people receiving the drug Warfarin.
It is used to prevent blood clotting in
patients with a variety of problems such
as Deep Veined Thrombosis or who have recently
had a heart attack. Whilst it is a very
effective drug in these conditions it can
also have serious side effects, eg severe
haemorrhage. By undertaking certain blood
tests locally we are able to monitor the
effect Warfarin is having on patients and
so prevent the serious side effects. These
tests are carried out by our nurses in routine
appointments.
Intra-Uterine Contraceptive Device Fittings
The aim of this service is to ensure that
the full range of contraceptive options
is provided by Practices to patients. For
more details of our family planning services
click here.
Minor Injury Services
The purpose of this enhanced service is
to encourage Practices to undertake this
work to help relieve pressure on A&E
departments in large hospitals. We are funded
specifically to deal with injuries that
are less than 48 hours old. Injuries that
are older than this are seen to be part
of our routine and ongoing work. We are
able to deal with cuts capable of closure
by simple techniques; bruises; foreign bodies;
recent eye injuries; small burns and scalds;
and many other problems.
Near Patient Testing
The treatment of several diseases within
the fields of medicine, particularly rheumatology,
is increasingly reliant on drugs that, while
clinically effective, need regular blood
monitoring. This is due to the potentially
serious side effects that these drugs can
occasionally cause. It has been shown that
the incidence of side effects can be reduced
significantly if this monitoring is carried
out in a well organised way, close to the
patient’s home. The particular drugs
we are funded to monitor are: Penacillamine,
Auranofin, Sulphasalazine, Methotrexate
and Sodium Aurothiomalate.
|
