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If you’re a patient at our practice you can now use the new NHS App, a simple and secure way to access a range of NHS services on your smartphone or tablet.

You can use the NHS App to check your symptoms and get instant advice, book appointments, order repeat prescriptions, view your GP medical record and more.

If you already use SystmOnline you can continue to use it. You can use the NHS App as well.

For more information go to www.nhs.uk/nhsapp

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Can you help us to help you?

Our local population is growing fast and there is a huge demand for appointments, both with the doctors and the nurses. We have been looking at ways to improve appointment availability and have found many appointments are wasted each week because the patient is not booked in with an appropriate clinician. For example:

Not all doctors undertake joint injections
Not all doctors undertake minor surgery
Not all doctors undertake coil fitting
Some doctors have more specialised knowledge in particular areas
Not all nurses undertake travel vaccinations
Not all nurses undertake cervical screening
Some nurses have more specialised knowledge in particular areas

If you are booked with a doctor or nurse who is unable to deal with the problem for which you are attending, it is not only a wasted appointment for the doctor or nurse, but also a wasted visit for you as you may be asked to re book.

There are some procedures which cannot be undertaken if there is not a second nurse or a doctor on the premises, for example immunisations.

It helps us to know the reason for routine appointments where equipment needs to be prepared, for example, a particular injection may need to be collected in advance from a central storage area or may even be out of stock and need to be ordered.

We are aware some patients object to being asked the reason for their appointment, our receptionists have received comments such as ‘What has it got to do with you?’ ‘Why do you want to know are you a doctor?’

Please be assured, if your visit is for a medical problem which you do not wish to discuss with the receptionist, we quite understand and are more than happy for you to tell us you would rather not give the reason.

Please

Wherever possible provide the receptionist with a little information regarding the reason for your appointment

Help us to help you.

Practice Policies

Confidentiality & Medical Records

Locked blue folder The practice complies with data protection and access to medical records legislation. Identifiable information about you will be shared with others in the following circumstances:

To provide further medical treatment for you e.g. from district nurses and hospital services.
To help you get other services e.g. from the social work department. This requires your consent.
When we have a duty to others e.g. in child protection cases anonymised patient information will also be used at local and national level to help the Health Board and Government plan services e.g. for diabetic care.

If you do not wish anonymous information about you to be used in such a way, please let us know.

Reception and administration staff require access to your medical records in order to do their jobs. These members of staff are bound by the same rules of confidentiality as the medical staff.

Primary Care Network

We are a member of Sudbury Town Primary Care Network (PCN). This means we will be working closely with Hardwicke House Practice and other health and care organisations to provide healthcare services to you.

During the course of our work we may share your information with Hardwicke House Practice and other health care organisations/professionals. We will only share this information where it relates to your direct healthcare needs.

When we do this, we will always endure that appropriate agreements are in place to protect your information and keep it safe and secure. This is also what the Law requires us to do.

If you would like to see the information the PCN holds about you please contact us.

Freedom of Information

Information about the General Practioners and the practice required for disclosure under this act can be made available to the public. All requests for such information should be made to the practice manager.

Access to Records

In accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and Access to Health Records Act, patients may request to see their medical records. Such requests should be made through the practice manager and may be subject to an administration charge. No information will be released without the patient consent unless we are legally obliged to do so.

Violence Policy

The NHS operate a zero tolerance policy with regard to violence and abuse and the practice has the right to remove violent patients from the list with immediate effect in order to safeguard practice staff, patients and other persons. Violence in this context includes actual or threatened physical violence or verbal abuse which leads to fear for a person’s safety. In this situation we will notify the patient in writing of their removal from the list and record in the patient’s medical records the fact of the removal and the circumstances leading to it.

Arriving late for appointments policy