Cestria Health Centre is a group practice of nine doctors and their staff, serving roughly 11,200 patients. Our “Mission Statement” is to do the best we can for all of our patients at all times.

Most medical problems and health issues can be dealt with by our experienced team. In addition to everything you would normally expect, we have doctors with special expertise in several areas including diabetes, cardiology, ear nose and throat, minor surgery, dermatology, sexual health and contraception. We run several GPSI (specialist) clinics for the local NHS, where patients from other GP surgeries are referred to our doctors by theirs. We have an experienced Nursing team including Nurse Practitioners, Nurses and Health Care Assistants. We have many other non-GP professionals and services operating within the Cestria Team, from nutritionists, counsellors, family planning nurses through to in-house physiotherapy. We host outside agencies providing diverse services such as Citizen’s Advice Bureau sessions, hearing aid clinics, eyelid surgery and consultant ENT clinics. Where outside referral is required for any problem, we use the NHS “Choose and Book” system to offer a wide range of choices suitable for dealing with the particular problem, and we always take patient’s preferences into account.

The doctors do not operate personal lists and you are free to see the doctor of your choice. However, it is best to see one doctor, throughout the duration of any one illness, if at all possible.

Usually there will be a further one or two fully qualified doctors training to specialise in General Practice, or other healthcare professionals, working with us at any one time. Additionally we sometimes have undergraduate medical students learning about General Practice who may be “sitting in” on consultations. This is valuable educational experience for them, but if you would prefer to be seen by the doctor alone, you simply need to let the receptionist know.

If you live in our Practice area and would like to register with us, please complete a registration form that is available from reception. You will be registering with the Practice rather than an individual GP.

Access for disabled patients

The Health Centre has good access and facilities for the disabled. The car park is large, with a number of reserved disabled spaces. We request that disabled bays are not abused. Please ensure that cars are not parked on access roads as this causes a safety hazard.

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The Practice Team

The Practice Manager organises the day to day running of the Practice.

Receptionists help organise appointments, repeat prescriptions, ambulance bookings and take requests for house calls.

Secretaries are the communication link between the GPs and other health services and hospitals. Patients who have already been referred for a hospital appointment will usually get a letter direct from the hospital with the details of the appointment. If necessary the patient may make further enquiries from the hospital department themselves, but our secretaries will be happy to help if there are problems.

Practice Nurse Team is made up of nurses and a nurse practitioner, and trained health care assistants plus specialist reception staff who deal with results and organising tests. The nurses work both supporting the doctors and also independently. They are available for advice 9-12am and 1-6pm, and manage minor injuries and dressings as well having booked appointment surgeries for vaccinations, blood pressure checks, cervical smears, family planning etc.

Community Nurses specialise in the care of people who need nursing in their own home. They also have a role in health promotion and providing routine check-ups for the housebound.

Midwives help with care during and for 10 days after pregnancy.

Health Visitors advise about health and development in the under 5’s

Community Mental Health Team is made up of specialist nurses and supporting staff under the guidance of a Consultant Psychiatrist. They act as a link between mentally ill patients at home and the hospital psychiatric services.

Physiotherapists We have a team of physiotherapists who provide treatment appointments most days.

We also have Dieticians, Podiatrists, Counsellors, and other professionals, and we host services such as Hearing Aid Fitting and ENT Clinics, Specialist Cardiology Palpitations Assessment and Advisors from the Citizen’s Advice Bureau.

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Appointment System

Consultations are by appointment only except in emergency.

Routine Appointments

For a routine appointment, please call 3887771 between 8.30am and 6pm. You will be offered a time for the next available surgery. A specifically named doctor appointment may be further in the future than an “any doctor” appointment due to individual doctor’s commitments. There are normally surgery appointment times between 8.00am and 11.30am, and 2.00pm and 6.00pm each weekday, and a limited number of pre-booked only appointments on Thursday nights. You can help us by being on time for your appointment or letting us know if you need to cancel.

Weekday Urgent Appointments

If you have a problem which you feel must be dealt with the same day, please telephone as soon as possible, ideally between 8.30am and 10am. If no routine appointment is available, then you will either be given an appointment to be seen that day as an urgent extra case, or the receptionist will offer you the advice of the Telephone Advice Line (doctor or nurse practitioner), depending on the nature of the problem. The doctor / nurse giving telephone advice will discuss the problem with you and ensure that you are offered appropriate medical help or advice, including an appointment if needed.

Telephone Advice Line

A Telephone Advice Line doctor / nurse works every weekday between 9am and 10.30am and will return your call, normally within 30 minutes. Many consultations are because patients need information, which can often be given over the telephone. The person operating the advice line will be one of the team from Cestria, not an outside agency, and they will be happy to provide specific or general medical advice, and can prescribe if appropriate; patients with an urgent medical problem will be seen within a time appropriate to the problem (usually within 24 – 48 hours).

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House Calls and Out of Hours Cover

House Calls

It is a great help to the doctors in planning the day ahead if requests for house calls can be placed before 10am. Obviously requests for very urgent calls can be made at any time.

House calls are necessary for the house bound or those too ill to attend surgery. If you are in doubt about whether your condition requires a house call, please ask to speak to one of the nurses or doctors, who will be happy to advise.

It is commonly though that leaving the house with a cough or rash or a temperature may be harmful, but this is not generally so, even in a child. A more complete examination and any extra tests that may be necessary are more easily carried out at the Health Centre.

It is helpful if you can give the receptionist some idea of the symptoms to enable the doctor to judge the urgency of the call and if there is any need for special equipment, drugs etc. If you feel that the information is too personal, please ask to speak to the doctor directly.

Evenings, Weekends and Holidays

From September 2004 out-of-hours medical services are provided by Durham and Chester-le-Street Primary Care Trust. They are responsible for doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals who will be available out-of-hours to undertake home visits or consultations at an out-of-hours centre or to give telephone advice. As a part of helping you with your out-of-hours call, you will be offered the services of the NHS-Direct advice line. The trained nurses who take your call will be able to offer expert advice, and/or arrange further involvement with a healthcare professional.

To access medical help out-of-hours:

For urgent help when the surgery is open, call either 999 in an emergency,

or to contact the surgery On Call Doctor 8am-6pm weekdays, telephone 0191 388 3336

If you have an urgent medical problem when the surgery is closed,

please contact the Out-of-Hours Service on: telephone 0300 111 0111

You can also get health advice 24 hours a day by calling the

NHS Helpline on: 111

Alternatively, you can access any of the above numbers by ringing

Cestria Health Centre Emergency Line when the surgery is closed on: 0191 388 3336

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Repeat Prescriptions

When you collect your prescription (if you are on regular long term treatment), you will also receive a tear-off slip listing your name and computer number, your repeat medications, and the planned review date for these medications.

A repeat of your prescription may be obtained by any of the methods listed below. Except in emergencies, the prescription will be normally be ready for collection from reception after 2pm the day following the request being made. Although we will try hard, unfortunately it is not possible to guarantee the prescription will be ready then, as sometimes it is necessary to verify that the prescription is still appropriate and have it signed by the original prescribing doctor. If required, please phone to check it is ready before attending to pick up a prescription. It is possible to have your prescription sent direct to some of the Chester-le-Street pharmacies, but next day availability is then unlikely.

Request Repeat Prescriptions By:

Telephone 387 1759 between 11am and 4pm, quoting your name and computer number (on the top right hand of the repeat prescription list).

Leave your ticked repeat prescription slip in one of the two the collection boxes, one is situated just outside the surgery main door for out of hours use, and the other is just to the left of the main reception counter.

Send a stamped addressed envelope with your ticked repeat slip to the Health Centre. We will post your prescription to you the next day. Remember to make allowances for postal delays/Bank Holidays etc.

Notes

Prescriptions for up to 3 consecutive months in advance can be requested, with your doctor’s agreement. Normally your doctor will need to review your treatment with you at least annually.

Please order only the medications that you need, by ticking the box to the right of that medication. Please do not order any medications that you do not need.

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Health Visitors and Children’s Health

Our Health Visitor team is happy to answer your questions regarding young children’s health issues.

The Health Visitors are available for telephone calls:

0191 – 387 6551

If you have children under the age of 5, or a child of any age with special problems, the Health Visitors would be grateful if you could contact them as soon as possible after you register with the practice. An appointment or home assessment can then be offered as appropriate.

Children’s Clinic times:

Thursday 2pm to 3pm (Health Visitor and GP)

Both booked appointments and un-booked slots with a GP or Nurse Practitioner are available. The clinic is intended for children under 7 years old. Reasons for attending range from treatment of minor children’s illness, to general health concerns and development advice. We very much favour preventing disease through immunisation, vaccinations are provided at the clinic between 1.30pm and 3pm.

Developmental checks for 8 week old babies are carried out by a GP between 1.30 and 2pm on Thursdays. Appointments will be sent out automatically when checks are due. Please inform the Health Visitors if you think that your child may have missed out on either vaccination or developmental checks.

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Special Clinics and Services (appointment required)

Specialist Medical Services Provided by Doctors at Cestria (various times)

All of our GPs are highly qualified and several have taken postgraduate courses leading to extra qualifications. We run specialised clinics for the local NHS authorities, and see patients from other GP’s surgeries who have been referred to us. At the moment our doctors run specialised GPSI clinics in:

Cardiology - heart failure

Cardiology - palpitations

Skin Surgery - and other surgical procedures, including removal of some skin cancers

Ear Nose and Throat - specialist clinic dealing with more difficult cases

Dermatology - specialist clinic dealing with more difficult cases

We have more GPs currently engaged on various other GPSI qualification courses.

Ante-Natal Clinic (Tuesday 1pm to 4pm)

The Practice Midwives and a GP are present to provide care and advice during pregnancy. Most antenatal care is shared between the GP surgery and local hospital antenatal clinic. Post-natal exams are provided 6 weeks after delivery.

Family Planning Clinic (Tue. 9-10.30am & Thur. 5.30-7.30pm)

These clinics cover pill prescriptions, coil and cap fittings, injections for contraception, post-coital contraception (“morning after pill”), breast checks and sterilisation discussion and referral. We prefer our patients to attend the Family Planning Clinic for all family planning matters including provision of condoms. Post-natal examinations are often also performed at this clinic.

Travel Advice Clinic

Our nurses provide comprehensive travel health advice using a special computer program. You will be asked your travel plan details and will receive a printed guidance sheet and, if you wish, vaccinations as appropriate. We make a charge for this service if the required advice is complex or if treatment is not covered by the NHS.

Cervical Smears

All women between the ages of 25 and 65 are recommended to have a cervical smear performed every 3 years until the age of 50, then every 5 years until the age of 65. Please contact the nurse receptionist for an appointment or advice regarding arranging a smear test.

Asthma Clinic (Monday 2-5pm)

Held weekly for monitoring and managing asthma, by appointment.

Diabetic Clinic (Friday9-11.30am and 2-4pm)

This clinic is held most weeks, and is useful for monitoring and as a “one stop” clinic for diabetes management. As well as the doctor and nurses, there is also a specially trained Chiropodist for foot care, and on the spot blood testing with immediate results to help decide if any changes in medication are needed. Diabetic advice is available from the doctors and nurses at any time during the week if needed.

Cestria’s own patients Minor Surgery clinic

Minor surgical procedures are undertaken in the surgery by suitably trained and experienced GPs.

Physiotherapy

A team of physiotherapists work within the Health Centre to treat back, joint and tendon problems. Our physiotherapists are highly qualified and also operate a specialist joint and tendon injection clinic for appropriate cases. Patients need to consult with a GP to be referred to the physiotherapists.

Warfarin (Monday 12-1.30pm)

We have a specialist team who operate a warfarin monitoring clinic. The clinic uses on the spot testing for instant readout, prescription advice and also offers a home visiting service for the housebound.

Counsellor (various times)

A counsellor consults within the surgery to help with emotional and psychological problems. Patients need to be referred by a GP.

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General Timetable

exact times may vary ->	Morning	Early Afternoon	Afternoon	Evening
Monday	GP Surgeries	GP Surgeries ---- Warfarin Clinic	GP Surgeries ---- Asthma Clinic ---- Travel Clinic	----
Tuesday	GP Surgeries ---- Family Planning	GP Surgeries ---- Ante-Natal Clinic	GP Surgeries	----
Wednesday	GP Surgeries	GP Surgeries	GP Surgeries	----
Thursday	GP Surgeries	GP Surgeries ---- Children’s Clinic	GP Surgeries	Family Planning and Pre-book only appointments
Friday	GP Surgeries ---- Diabetic Clinic	GP Surgeries	GP Surgeries ---- Diabetic Clinic	----
Saturday	The surgery is closed except in exceptional circumstances

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Practice Boundaries and Summary of Important Information

We accept new patients from within the red bordered area:

Regarding applicants requesting registration onto our patient list, Cestria will never discriminate on grounds of:

· race, gender, social class, age, religion, sexual orientation or appearance.

· disability or medical condition.

Important Information and Contact Numbers

Routine Appointments / Enquiries (8:30am – 6pm) telephone 388 7771

Repeat Prescriptions (11am–4pm) telephone 387 1759

House Calls (8.30-10am where possible) telephone 388 3336

Emergencies / Out of Hours (consider 999 if appropriate) 388 3336 (if surgery open) or 0300 1110 111 (night/weekends)

Health Visitors 387 6551

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Patient Confidentiality

We respect your right to privacy and keep all your health information confidential and secure. It is important that the NHS keeps accurate and up-to-date records about your health and treatment so that those treating you can give you the best possible advice and care. This information is only available to those involved in your care and you should never be asked for personal medical information by anyone not involved in your care. You have a right to know what information we hold about you. If you would like to see your records, please call our Practice Manager.

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Comments, Compliments and Complaints

If you have any comments, good or bad, please let us know!

If you have a concern about the service that you have received from the doctors or staff working for this Practice you are entitled to ask for an explanation. We operate an informal, in-house complaints procedure to deal with your complaints. This procedure does not deal with matters of legal liability or compensation. In some cases the in-house procedure is not an appropriate way of dealing with an issue, in which case you will be referred to the appropriate authority.

Your comment, compliment or complaint should be addressed to the Practice Manager, Mrs Denise Hunter, or alternatively you may ask for an appointment in order to discuss things. Where necessary, the Practice Manager will explain the complaints procedure to you and will make sure your concerns are dealt with promptly.

We are keen to continuously improve our service and genuinely value any comments or suggestions you wish to make.

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Mutual Respect and Standards of Behaviour

We aim to treat our patients courteously at all times and expect our patients to treat our staff in a similarly respectful way. We take seriously any unpleasant or inappropriate behaviour against any of our staff or patients. If a patient is threatening, disruptive, rude, violent or abusive (including shouting and swearing), they will be warned to stop their behaviour. If they persist or have behaved in an extreme way, we may exercise our right to take action to have them removed (immediately if necessary) from our list of patients. In serious cases the police will be involved and legal action may be taken.

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Missed Appointments

Everyone occasionally forgets about an appointment, or arrives late through no fault of their own - it’s a normal part of life! However, if you know you are going to be late for an appointment, please try to phone the surgery to let us know with as much warning as possible, or call after the event as soon as you realise, in order to rearrange. We have no difficulty in filling an empty slot at short notice, and are always happy to book you the next available appointment!

Accidents aside, unfortunately some patients repeatedly fail to attend appointments they have booked, wasting a lot of time and NHS resources. Before we had a system to help prevent it, one patient failed to attend 25 appointments in 1 year! Where it has become obvious that a patient is doing this without warning, frequently and without good reason or explanation, we may take steps to try to stop the pattern repeating. For example we may require a patient to confirm their intention to attend by phoning us the day before the appointment. Repeated failures to do so may result in further action, even ultimately de-registration.

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Additional Information and Links

Practice Address

Cestria Health Centre
Whitehill Way
Chester le Street
County Durham
DH2 3DJ

Telephone (0191) 388 7771
Fax (0191) 387 1803

e-mail: cestria.hc@virgin.net

Website http://freespace.virgin.net/cestria.hc

Cestria location map, click here

The nearest NHS walk-in centre is situated at:

Newcastle Westgate NHS Walk-in Centre
Newcastle General Hospital
Westgate Road
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
NE4 6BE

NHS Direct Advice

The NHS Non-Emergency Health line is a service providing high quality health information and advice for the people of England.

It can be contacted as follows: Tel: 111

The local Primary Care Trust is situated at:

County Durham Primary Care Trust
Durham University Science Park
John Snow House
Durham
DH1 3YG
Tel: (0191) 301 1300

website: http://www.countydurham.nhs.uk/

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