I hope you join us in saying a very big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our superstar receptionist Maddie!
We hope you have the loveliest of lockdown birthdays, and plenty of zoom hugs!
Keep us in the loop!
Please remember to let reception know if your telephone number/s or email address have changed. You can do so easily online if you have access to the NHS app or Patient Access. If you would like to sign up to one of these services you will be able to book appointments online, order repeat prescriptions and much more. For more information on this click here.
It is really important especially with COVID that St Wulfstan Surgery hold the correct contact details for yourself.
Appointment confirmations and urgent communications often occur via text message and email is a great way for patients to receive the surgery newsletter plus some administration correspondence.
We are now hiring!
We are currently looking to recruit a new GP at St Wulfstan Surgery.
If you would like to join our team, please speak to our Practice Manager, Lindsay Ward, for more details by calling 01926 810939 or e-mail Lindsay.Ward@stwulfstansurgery.nhs.uk
It's time to take time for YOU! - Don't miss out!
The Get Set to Go Team from mind are offering 6 free sessions of the following: Yoga, Tai Chi, Vinyasa Yoga and BodyBalance (please see image attached for session details).
The sessions will begin week commencing 22nd February, commence weekly and finish in time for Easter. Those who are interested in joining our sessions can sign up by emailing us at getsettogo@springfieldmind.org.uk or by calling 01789 298615, all abilities are welcome (age 18+).
This is an amazing opportunity to take that much needed time to focus on yourself, whilst also enjoying moving your body. We all need to step up and show up for ourselves right now.
Todays COVID-19 Vaccination Update
LATEST UPDATE - 10.02.21
Vaccinations are continuing well, but are limited by the vaccine supply given to our local vaccination site at Southam Clinic.
Locally, in excess of 90% of eligible patients in Groups 1-4 have now been vaccinated.
The vaccination site has now been given permission to start vaccinating Group 5 patients (aged 65 and over), so invitations are currently in progress. If you find yourself in this age range then please be patient and you will be contacted via telephone once an appointment is available.
Housebound individuals are being vaccinated from this week, and again if you are eligible, you will be contacted.
If you are aged over 70 and have not yet had your vaccine then please let us know, by email preferably.
Lets hope this progress gets us closer to returning to normality!
For further details regarding the COVID vaccination programme please visit our dedicated page.
To stay up to date with our weekly news email, please register below.
Dr Bakewell's Guide to New Year's Resolutions - How to Succeed
Volume 1 | Issue 1
January 2021
The Good Health Newsletter
New Year’s Resolutions - How to Succeed
Dr H Bakewell
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
At this time of year we start to look to the future and maybe make some New Year’s resolutions to improve our life, make a healthy change or do something we’ve always wanted to do. A YouGov poll in 2018 found that 25% of Britons will make a New Year’s Resolution and that the commonest resolutions are to exercise, loose weight and eat a healthier diet.
On average 80% of New year’s resolutions will fail, so often after a few weeks of effort our good intentions fall by the wayside but there is good science to back up why this happens.
“You’ll never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.”
How to Succeed
1. Be specific
A resolution to “do more exercise” becomes “do yoga on my yoga mat in the living room for 20 minutes twice per week after I get home from work”
2. Make a tiny change
If 20 minutes twice per week is not realistic then reduce it to something more achievable, say 10 minutes just once per week. Don’t worry if it doesn’t seem like much, by setting the bar so low you are more likely to be successful and this creates positive feedback, making the habit more likely to stick, then you can increase it if you wish. It’s better to make a small change now and stick to it than fail to completely overhaul your lifestyle.
Tip: Don’t try to create more than about three new habits at a time
3. Create an environment that sets you up to succeed
If you want to give up eating unhealthy snacks, remove them from the house, hide them in your garden shed or simply don’t buy them, stock up with some healthy alternatives instead. Want to exercise more? You could try getting your exercise clothes ready the night before so all you have to do in the morning is put them on and go for that run.
4. Get help and support
You are more likely to succeed if you have the support of your friends, family or by joining a group of like-minded group of people such your local ParkRun group (see below for details). At St Wulfstan surgery our smoking cessation nurse can offer support to stop smoking, studies show you are more likely to quit smoking for good with outside help.
5. Don’t try to do create more than about three new habits at a time
6. Focus on the process not the end goal
Having a goal doesn’t mean you will achieve it but by focusing on achieving the small daily habits you will gradually incorporate the change into your lifestyle and that way you will start to see results.
Further Reading
If you want to learn more about building daily habits to improve your lifestyle and overall health then I recommend checking out:
Written by Dr H Bakewell
Welcome Back Dr Mistry!
We are delighted to announce the return of Dr Deena Mistry to the practice, who has been greatly missed by staff and patients alike. Dr Mistry will be attending the surgery next week.
After her time away on maternity leave, she will be running 3 sessions a week at the surgery starting Monday 8/2/21 - add the date to your calenders!
World Cancer Day 2021
Today is World Cancer Day 2021. It is really important that if you feel like you have signs or symptoms of cancer, then you should see or speak to a GP.
What are the signs or symptoms you may ask? The NHS.net website has highlighted some really important symptoms to be aware of. For ease, these symptoms are listed below and can also be found on the NHS.net website.
Changes in bowel habits
See your GP if you've noticed these changes and it's lasted for more than a few weeks:
blood in your poo
diarrhoea or constipation for no obvious reason
a feeling of not having fully emptied your bowels after going to the toilet
pain in your stomach (abdomen) or back passage (anus)
Bloating
See a GP if you've had bloating for 3 weeks or more.
Lump in your breast
See your GP if you notice a lump in your breast or if you have a lump that's rapidly increasing in size elsewhere on your body.
Bleeding
You should also see your GP if you have any unexplained bleeding, such as:
bleeding between periods
Coughing, chest pain and breathlessness
Contact your GP if you've had a cough for more than 3 weeks.
Symptoms such as shortness of breath or chest pain may also be a sign of a severe (acute) condition, such as pneumonia. See your GP straight away if you experience these types of symptoms.
Unexplained weight loss
You should also see your GP if you've lost a lot of weight over the last couple of months that cannot be explained by changes to your diet, exercise or stress.
Read about unintentional weight loss.
Moles
See your GP if you have a mole that:
changes shape or looks uneven
changes colour, gets darker or has more than 2 colours
starts itching, crusting, flaking or bleeding
gets larger or more raised from the skin
Any of the above changes means there's a chance you have malignant melanoma, a form of skin cancer.
-Dr F Al-Ramadani
Taking care of our future - Children's Mental Health Week
The 1st of Feb marks the beginning of Children’s Mental Health Week.
Our most important and valuable effort is taking care of our little ones. We understand how hard it has been for families this past year, and how scary the world must be for children at present. If you feel that your little ones are struggling, especially with all the media exposure, please read the following article for tips on how help your children understand scary world news.
However, we also understand that it doesn’t always get easier with age. Whether you are a parent worried about your child or a young person and feel as though you are struggling, young minds offer resources which may be able to help you or a loved one through a difficult time.
Young people or parents can also call the local NHS Mental Health 24/7 emergency helpline on 0808 196 6798 in a crisis.
If you would like to chat with one of our lovely GPs, click the link to join us.
Todays COVID-19 Vaccination Update
The Southam COVID vaccination programme has been really successful to date, with at least 91.7% of our patients aged over 70 now vaccinated. This has been a huge effort by all but a significant thank you goes to the South Warwickshire GP Federation, the volunteers and our patients who were often called at short notice, even in the snow! Well done to all!
The vaccination programme is therefore on track to meet the government target of vaccinating those in priority groups 1-4 by mid-February (that is those individuals 70 years of age and over and clinically extremely vulnerable). There is a temporary lull at present as we await further supplies of vaccine, but patients will continue to be contacted as and when the vaccine supply arrives. Therefore it remains that you do not need to do anything, but await contact from the vaccination booking centre.
You may also have also received a national letter inviting you to book a vaccination at a mass vaccination site (our nearest is in Stoneleigh). You are entitled to do so if you have received this invite, but you may also wait to be invited locally if you have not been so already.
Let’s hope we are now a few more steps closer to normality!
For further details regarding the COVID vaccination programme please visit our dedicated page.
To stay up to date with our weekly news email, please register below.
STAY ALERT - COVID-19 vaccine scams
We need you be aware of the COVID-19 vaccine scams that are circulating at the moment. Unfortunately they are targeting our wonderful community, as well as the most vulnerable. It is important to be vigilant and to remember the following:
The COVID-19 Vaccine will always be free, you will never be asked to pay for it - EVER!
The NHS will never ask you to share your bank details to confirm your identity, under NO circumstance. So please do not give anyone your bank details, especially if you have any doubt whatsoever in their identity.
If you have any questions about the vaccine - click the link! We have answered some of the most common questions we have been receiving from our patients. https://www.stwulfstan.co.uk/covid19-vaccination
St Wulfstan #1 in South Warwickshire for Flu Vaccinations!
We are really proud to announce that St Wulfstan Surgery and our patients have achieved the highest levels of flu vaccination uptake in South Warwickshire across most groups, this Winter.
St Wulfstan Surgery has the highest uptake of flu vaccination in the following groups:
Patients aged 65 and over
Patients aged 50-64
6 months to under 65 years: At-risk
Pregnant Women
These incredible results are made possible by the hard work and dedication of all of our staff, and the support of our wonderful patients! Having the flu vaccine helps protect our community.
If you are aged 50-64 and have still not had your flu vaccine, it’s not too late. Please call reception if you wish to book.
Our domain rankings are given below:
Patients aged 65 and over 1st (out of 32 practices)
Patients aged 50-64 1st (out of 32 practices)
6 months to under 65 years: At-risk 1st (out of 32 practices)
Pregnant Women 1st (out of 32 practices)
Children aged 2yrs 2nd (out of 32 practices)
Children aged 3yrs. 4th (out of 32 practices)
New Staff, New Services - Welcome Elicia!
We are really happy to welcome Elicia to the surgery. She is working with us as part of the Warwickshire East Primary Care Network (PCN). She is a Social Prescribing Link Worker, forming part of our growing Health & Wellbeing Team and joins our current team along with Rita & Jo. Social Prescribing Link Workers take a holistic approach to care, and help patients access local services that maybe relevant to them, such as befriending services in the case of loneliness, or financial assistance services such as Act on Energy.
A quick ‘hello’ from Elicia:
“Hi my name is Elicia Sidhu, I am new in role as a Social Prescriber Link Worker, I have been working within social care for a few years and my background is supporting individuals, signposting and caring for those in the local community. I look forward to meeting you when we can.“
Welcome Amanda!
As part of our growing Surgery we are very pleased to welcome Amanda to our Reception Team!
We have always had incredible feedback from our patients regarding our reception team, and we are sure Amanda will fit in perfectly!
COVID-19 Vaccination Update
Latest update as of 14th January 2021
COVID-19 vaccinations are now underway in Southam. Eligible patients will receive telephone calls inviting them to make an appointment for their vaccination in due course. Invitations will be sent gradually according to both the supply of vaccine from the NHS, and according to the priority groups set out by the Joint Committee on Vaccination & Immunisation. At this stage you do not need to do anything further, and if eligible you will be contacted in due course.
FOR MORE INFORMATION REGARDING THE VACCINE ITSELF, PLEASE EITHER:
Visit the NHS Website, OR
For ongoing updates please continue to visit our COVID-19 vaccination page, or register your email address below to be added to our weekly email update.