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2 The General Practitioner Dr G. G. K. Wijethilleke Practice Manager Jerry Brees Receptionists Janice Southwell Angela Chetwyn Pamela Rawlinson Practice Nurse Elaine Hodgkiss District Nurses MBBS FRCS (Eng) District Nurses are based ar Bamber Bridge Clinic, Tel: Consultation Times Dr Wijethilleke Monday am pm Tuesday am pm Wednesday am pm Thursday am Friday am pm Extended Hours Three Wednesdays a month pm (a full surgery with the nurse in attendance). Appointments Appointments may be made by telephoning or by calling in at the surgery. Routine appointments may be made well in advance (maximum six months), which will enable us to offer you an appointment at a time more suitable for your requirements. If you cannot keep an appointment, please inform us as soon as possible as this will assist in over-subscribed situations. Emergencies If you are confronted by a serious problem such as severe chest pain or severe bleeding, call an ambulance (tel: 999) before calling the surgery. Home Visits Patients are requested to telephone before 10.30am if a visit is required that day. Emergency visits only will be arranged after that time. Please give the receptionist as much information as possible to enable the doctor to allocate priority to house calls. Please remember that several patients can be seen in the surgery in the time it takes to do a home visit. Weekend And Night Cover Out of hours please contact Preston Primary Care. Tel: NHS Direct NHS Direct is a 24 hour helpline providing health information on Information is also available via their website Repeat Prescriptions Repeat prescriptions will be issued at the doctor s discretion and are normally for patients on long-term treatment. Requests for prescriptions can be made by telephone, in writing or by calling at the surgery from 8.00am to 6.00pm Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays and 8.00am to 1.00pm Thursdays. We are unable to take orders or issue repeat prescriptions at weekends, public holidays or out of normal surgery hours. Please allow two complete working days before collection and make allowances for weekends and public holidays. Where possible give exact drug names when ordering.

3 Clinics Antenatal Clinic Monday am Patients are seen by the midwife at the clinics by appointment and also by the doctors during surgery hours. Baby Clinic Thursday 11.00am 12 noon The baby clinics are run by Dr Wijethilleke and the health visitor for child developmental checks and immunisations and allow an opportunity to discuss other problems, eg sleeping, feeding and child health worries, with a doctor or health visitor. Family Planning Contraceptive care is provided by the nurse during surgery hours. Well Woman/Man Clinics This clinic is run during surgery hours by the nurse and is by appointment only. Minor Surgery Dr Wijethilleke carries out minor surgical procedures on Mondays at the surgery by appointment and he will be happy to advise you on this. Non-NHS Examinations The doctor is happy to carry out medicals, eg insurance and HGV and taxi licences by appointment outside surgery hours. Please telephone the surgery for an appointment. Do ask at reception for the charges for these services. Counselling A voluntary counsellor is available for counselling on Monday afternoons. Please ask the doctor for an appointment. Patients Over 75 Years If you are aged 75 years or over, you should be seen annually either by the doctor or the practice nurse. This can be arranged at the surgery or, if that is not possible, a home visit will be arranged. Travel Immunisations/Vaccinations Please make an appointment at least three weeks in advance of your holiday to ensure adequate cover. A charge will be made for certain immunisations and vaccinations which are not covered by the NHS. A list of these charges is held at reception. Flu Vaccination An influenza vaccination is particularly recommended for patients with heart, lung or kidney disease, diabetes and residents of nursing and residential homes. Please contact the reception staff in September for details of the vaccination dates and to make an appointment. If you are unable to attend the surgery, a home visit will be arranged to undertake this facility. Comments And Suggestions We are happy to accept and consider comments and suggestions from our patients. Please present your views in writing at reception or use our suggestions box. Disabled Access At the Medicare surgery reserved car parking spaces for the disabled are marked near the front door. Wheelchair access to the building is via a ramp near the front entrance. The ramp also allows access to the treatment room from the outside in an emergency. Patient services are provided at ground floor level. If access proves difficult to any of our disabled patients we would be happy to consider any suggestions for improvement. Complaints Procedure We always try to provide the best services possible, but there may be times when you feel this has not happened. The following information explains our in-house complaints procedure, drawn up to respond to patient grievance. Our practice procedure is not able to deal with questions of legal liability or compensation. We hope you will use it to allow us to look into and, if necessary, correct any problems that you have identified, or mistakes that have been made. If you use this procedure it does not affect your right to complain to the Health Services Authority. Please note that we have to respect our duty of confidentiality to patients and a patient s consent will be necessary if a complaint is not made by the patient in person. If you wish to make a complaint, please telephone or write to our practice manager. Full details will be taken and a decision made on how best to undertake the investigation. We believe that it is important to deal with complaints swiftly, so you will be offered an appointment for a meeting to discuss the details within five days. Occasionally it may take longer, but we will keep you informed throughout. You may bring a friend or relative with you to the meeting. We will try to address your concerns, provide you with an explanation and discuss any action that may be needed. Confidentiality We ask you for information about yourself so that you can receive proper care and treatment. We keep this information, together with the details of your care, because it may be needed if we see you again. We may use some of this information for other reasons, for example, to help us to protect the health of the public generally, to plan for the future, to train staff and to carry our medical and other health research for the benefit of everyone. You have a right of access to your health records. If at any time you would like to know more, or have any concerns about how we use your information you can speak to Jerry Brees, practice manager, on Please help us to keep your records accurate by advising us of any changes to your details at your earliest convenience. EVERYONE WORKING FOR THE NHS HAS A LEGAL DUTY TO KEEP INFORMATION ABOUT YOU CONFIDENTIAL.

4 Freedom Of Information The Freedom of Information Act 2000 obliges the practice to produce a Publication Scheme. A Publication Scheme is a guide to the classes of information the practice intends to routinely make available. Zero Tolerance We strongly support the NHS policy on zero tolerance. Anyone attending the surgery who abuses the GPs, staff or other patients be it verbally, physically or in any threatening manner whatsoever, will risk removal from the practice list. In extreme cases we may summon the police to remove offenders from the practice premises. Primary Care Trust Central Lancashire PCT Jubilee House, Lancashire Business Park, Centurion Way, Leyland PR26 6TR Tel: Practice Charter Standards These are the local standards set within this practice for the benefit of our patients. It is our job to give you treatment and advice. Following discussion with you, you will receive the most appropriate care, given by suitably qualified people. No care or treatment will be given without your informed consent. In the interest of your health it is important for you to understand all the information given to you. Please ask us questions if you are unsure of anything. Our Responsibility To You: We are committed to giving you the best possible service. Names: People involved in your care will give you their names and ensure that you know how to contact them. The surgery should be well signposted and the doctor's and nurse's names are indicated on their surgery doors. Waiting Time: We run an appointment system in this practice. You will be given a time at which the doctor or nurse hopes to be able to see you. You should not wait more than 30 minutes in the waiting room without receiving an explanation for the delay. Access: You will have access to a doctor rapidly in case of emergency; four hours in cases of urgency; and otherwise within two working days. We will arrange a home visit as appropriate for those who are too ill or infirm to be brought to the surgery. Telephone: We will try to answer the phone promptly and to ensure that there are sufficient staff available to do this. You should be able to speak to a doctor by telephone. Test Results: If you have undergone tests or x-rays ordered by the practice, we will inform you of the results at your next appointment. If no further appointments needs to be arranged, we will advise you when and how to obtain the results. Respect: Patients will be treated as individuals and partners in their healthcare, irrespective of their ethnic origin or religious and cultural beliefs. Information: We will give you full information about the services we offer. Every effort will be made to ensure that you receive that information which directly affects your health and the care being offered. Health Promotion: The practice will offer patients advice and information on: steps they can take to promote good health and avoid illness; self-help which can be undertaken without reference to a doctor in the case of minor ailments. Health Records: You have the right to see your health records, subject to limitations in the law. These will be kept confidential at all times. Your Responsibilities To Us: Help us to help you. Please let us know if you change your name, address or telephone number. Please do everything you can to keep appointments. Tell us as soon as possible if you cannot. Otherwise, patients may have to wait longer. We need help too. Please ask for home visits by the doctor only when the person is too ill to visit the surgery. Please keep your phone call brief and avoid calling during the peak morning time for non-urgent matters. Test results take time to reach us, so please do not ring before you have been asked to do so. Enquiries about tests ordered by the hospital should be directed to the hospital, not the practice. We ask that you treat the doctors and practice staff with courtesy and respect. Please read our practice booklet. This will help you to get the best out of the services we offer. It is important that you understand the information given to you. Please ask us questions if you are unsure of anything. Remember, you are responsible for your own health and the health of your children. We will give you our professional help and advice. Please act upon it.

5 Have you had an accident or been injured? Road Traffic Accidents Tripping Accidents Accidents At Work Accidents Involving Cyclists Horse Riders, Pedestrians Children, Passengers If We Win You Keep 100% Of Your Compensation! NO WIN - NO FEE! For a FREE no obligation consultation with a local specialist solicitor call Station Road, Bamber Bridge, Preston, PR5 6TP This Firm Is Regulated By The Law Society & A Member Of The Association Of Personal Injury Lawyers Lock It List It Don t Lose It Spare Keys Never leave a spare key in a convenient hiding place such as under the doormat or in a flowerpot - a thief will look there first. If you've moved into a new house, consider changing the back and front door locks - other people may have keys that fit. Don't make it easy for the burglar. Over 100,000 bikes are reported stolen every year. There are several ways to prevent your bike being stolen: Always lock your bike when you leave it, preferably with a steel lock. Have your postcode stamped on your bike and get a recorded cycle form from your local police station. Stick a "Coded Cycle" sticker to your bike to let thieves know. If YOU are reading this, then so could patients looking for your kind of service. To place an advertising feature in our practice booklets and book a daily reminder of your service on our appointment cards and website simply phone Jenny Mellenchip now on To advertise your business in our booklet call

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7 Practice Area Watkin Lane B5254 William Street Berry Street Jubilee Road Sephton Street Hoghton Street Lindley Street Lonsdale Mews Barnfield Westfield B5257 B5254 A582 Farington A582 A5083 B5254 Practice Booklets are published by Neighbourhood Direct Ltd