| HOW
TO CONTACT NEWDOC
NEWDOC operates an URGENT
out-of-hours doctor service during weekday evenings and nights, and
at weekends and public holidays when your own surgery is closed. The
exact time that NEWDOC covers for your own doctor depends when they
hand over to us as many practices hold their own emergency surgeries
in the evening and at weekends. Therefore, regardless of the day or
time you need to contact an out-of-hours doctor, you must always call
your own surgery first to check whether they are able to deal with your
call. When your surgery has handed over to NEWDOC your own surgery's
answerphone message will give NEWDOC's telephone number, or they may
have arranged for your call to be automatically diverted to NEWDOC.
Make sure you have a pen and paper ready to copy down any instructions.
WHEN
YOU SHOULD CONTACT NEWDOC
You should only contact NEWDOC
for URGENT medical conditions that cannot wait until your own surgery
re-opens. In particular,
NEWDOC should not be used for:
Routine consultations for non-urgent conditions.
Details of test results
that have been carried out by
your own GP.
A second opinion for
something that you have recently
seen your own GP about.
Repeat prescriptions
or delivering/obtaining medication.
For convenience because
you are unable to see your
own GP during normal opening hours.
Potential life-threatening
emergencies, such as
unconsciousness, suspected heart attack, major injury
or accidents, overdoses or suspected poisoning. These
should be dealt with by ringing 999 and asking for the
ambulance service.
Patients who deliberately
misuse the NEWDOC service will have their details passed to their own
GP for follow-up action.
Please note that the NEWDOC
Primary Care Centre is not a `drop-in' facility. You must always contact
NEWDOC first by telephone to arrange an appointment at the Primary Care
Centre.
WHAT
WILL HAPPEN WHEN YOU CONTACT NEWDOC
Please note that all telephone
calls to or from NEWDOC are automatically recorded.
When you telephone NEWDOC
please ensure that you are able to give our receptionist the following
information:
The patient's full name,
date of birth, address and name of usual GP.
A contact telephone number
that the doctor can call back to speak to either you or the patient.
Details of the patient's
illness, any relevant medical history including details of any medication
that may have already been prescribed.
If you or the patient suffers
from a speech or hearing impairment, has difficulty using the English
language or are calling from a payphone please make sure that you tell
this to the receptionist at the start of your call.
The receptionist will either
arrange for a doctor to call you back or for certain conditions will
ask you to attend the Primary Care Centre for a consultation with one
of our duty doctors. If you would prefer to talk to a doctor on the
telephone first, this can always be arranged.
WHAT
WILL HAPPEN WHEN THE DOCTOR CALLS YOU BACK
The duty doctor will call
you or the patient back, usually within 30 minutes but this may be longer
during busy periods. If at any time you become seriously concerned for
the patient's condition while waiting for the doctor to return your
call either ring us again or if you cannot get through to NEWDOC do
not hesitate to dial 999 and ask for the ambulance service.
The duty doctor will need
to obtain detailed information about the current medical problem to
form a reasonable opinion on whether or not the patient requires urgent
care. If the doctor agrees that urgent care is required one of the following
services will be offered:
1.
Telephone advice to self-manage the condition. If subsequently the patient
does not improve within the timescale indicated by the doctor, or you
become concerned for their condition, do not hesitate to call NEWDOC
back again for further advice.
2.
A consultation at the out-of-hours Primary Care Centre. No appointment
time will be given but as you have requested urgent treatment you will
be expected to attend within two hours. Please note you may not attend
the Primary Care Centre unless you have previously agreed this with
the duty doctor, or the receptionist has invited you to attend.
3.
A home visit if the doctor decides that the patient is too ill to travel
to the Primary Care Centre.
4.
Arrange an ambulance to admit the patient directly to hospital if the
patient's condition requires an immediate hospital admission.
Details of all contacts with
NEWDOC will be passed to the patient's own GP the next working day for
any follow-up action and for inclusion with your personal medical record.
WHY
YOU MAY BE ASKED TO COME TO THE PRIMARY CARE CENTRE
There are three main reasons
why patients are best seen at the Primary Care Centre rather than at
home:
1.
The Centre is fully resourced with medical equipment and support staff
including nurses which facilitates better delivery of care. Being located
in an acute hospital, specialist advice or emergency admission is available
if required.
2.
A patient can be properly examined in better light and observed, if
need be, until their condition improves.
3.
A doctor can usually see at least three times as many patients at the
Centre in the time it takes them to do one home visit and so many patients
will benefit.
We would ask that you co-operate
with the doctor's decision and do not insist on a home visit if you
are fit enough to travel. If all the patients use NEWDOC sensibly and
co-operate with the duty doctor's decision we can deliver a service
that is best designed to meet the needs of those who are most at need.
TRANSPORT
Patients who are invited
to attend the Centre and who do not have access to their own transport
will need to seek assistance from relatives or friends, or use public
transport or taxi firms. NEWDOC cannot assist with transport or travel
costs to attend the Primary Care Centre.
While we sympathise with
the difficulties some patients may experience, a home visit cannot be
given simply to overcome transport problems if the patient's condition
does not warrant a home visit on medical grounds.
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