Welcome to the admin team, Tanya!

We would like to welcome Tanya to our growing team at St Wulfstan Surgery. She brings with her great experience and will help us continue to deliver an efficient service to you all!

“Hi my name is Tanya, I have a Gorgeous husband Joe and two amazing boys Tobias and Hugo.

I love going to the gym, spending time with my family and making memories. I have worked at St Wulfstan as bank staff since June, and have loved every minute, I am really looking forward to becoming a permanent member of this amazing team!”
— Tanya


Welcome to the Reception Team Natalie

We are very happy to introduce Natalie who has joined our reception team, please see below for an introduction from Natalie.

“Hi, my name is Natalie and I have just recently started working at St Wulfstan Surgery.
I have two children under the age of 5 and also a crazy 6 year old chocolate Labrador, so as you can imagine there is never a dull moment in our household.
I’m very excited about working for St Wulfstan surgery and am looking forward to getting to know both work colleagues and patients”
— Natalie

Bye Bye Sarah & Welcome Dr Beirne

As a GP Training Practice we are really privileged to welcome GP Trainees who are in the process of training to become fully fledged GP’s. They bring with them great experience from their training at medical school, but also through extensive hospital based placements and others.

It has been a privilege to have Dr Sarah Whaley with us for the last 6 months but her placement has now come to an end and she moves into a 6 month placement in Palliative Medicine. She will always be welcome at St Wulfstan Surgery and we wish her the best for her very bright future!

In her place we welcome Dr Tom Beirne who will be joining us for 6 months.

A few words from Tom:

“‘I am a GP trainee with an interest in Paediatrics and Acute medicine, I live with my fiance, son and dog and enjoy any activity that involves being outdoors!””
— Dr Tom Beirne

Free Workshops for people with Dementia and their carers: Arts Uplift

Arts and Dementia Warwickshire is a new arts programme for people living with dementia and their carers living in Warwickshire in the community, in In Patient wards and also in care homes. It has been commissioned by Warwickshire County Council. It will be a varied programme for 1.5 years including singing, performance poetry, arts and crafts, dance/movement, storytelling and reminiscence therapy. Alongside this there will be some training for care staff as well.

Please visit Arts Uplift more more details

In South Warwickshire we came across the following activities locally:

  • Warwick Memory Singers - Weekly on Wednesdays 1.00 pm to 2.30pm. £5 a week, carers go free. Held at Unitarian Chapel, 31 High Street, CV34 4AX. Further information or queries, contact Sarah Riddell 07722 632 242 or at sriddell@armonico.org.uk

  • Orchestra of the Swan - Held at 14 Rother Street, Stratford upon Avon, CV37 6LU Tel: 01789 267567 Stratford contact Sue Pope to get more information education@orchestraoftheswan.org

  • Dementia Café at Compton Verney is held at Compton Verney Art Gallery & Park (CV35 9HZ). Every first Tuesday of the month (10.30am - 12.30pm) Tel: 01295 688376 or 07964 683146 (Contact Heather or Paul) More information visit Compton Verney

  • Online Arts Uplift - Online choir weekly on a Monday from 2pm to 3pm its £5 per couple of £8 per group. Tel: 07946 585978 To join, contact Jenny Davis at jenny@artsuplift.co.uk

Children’s Community Autism Support Service

There are local services available to children, young people (up until their 19th birthday) who are on the neurodevelopmental waiting list for an autism diagnosis, or who have previously received a diagnosis but require support, and their families.

The service can offer low level support, focussing on understanding, communication, sensory integration, processing, behaviour, self-esteem, and daily routines and activities.

Online support groups are held Tuesday 7-8pm and Thursday 1-2pm.

There is also a wealth of other online support materials.

For more information, or to register, please visit Coventry & Warwickshire MIND

Silver Cloud - Immediate, Free, Online Help for Your Mental Wellbeing

St Wulfstan Surgery, as part of Warwickshire East Primary Care Network, are proud to be partnering with Silver Cloud to ensure all of our patients have access to online self-help modules that help to improve your mental wellness and wellbeing. Free of charge.

You can access this tool from anywhere, at any time. No waiting times. And with modules covering Resilience, Sleep, Stress and Money Worries - there is something to help everyone and anyone.

The specific modules available are as follows:

·      Space from COVID19

·      Space from Stress

·      Space from Money Worries

·      Space from Alcohol

·      Space for Sleep

·      Space for Mindfulness

·      Space for Positive Body Image

·      Space for Resilience

To give it a try, and improve your mental wellness and wellbeing please visit:

https://wepcn.silvercloudhealth.com/signup/

And use the PIN CODE: WEPCN2022

Free Access is provided to patients registered with any practice within Warwickshire East PCN.

Transport to Medical Appointments

Did you know there are a number of local services you can access to assist with getting you to and from medical appointments - please click on the links below to find out further information on eligibility and how to book these services.

VASA: The Community Transport Service is a volunteer led service, with volunteer drivers using their own cars, at a small fee, to transport people to medical or social inclusion journeys.

Please visit their website for the most up to date information including eligibility for the service.

Harbury E-Wheels are a free transport service, run by volunteers, using electric cars to reduce carbon emissions. For further information and how to book please click here.

Coventry and Warwickshire Patient Transport Services: transport for those with a medical need that prevents them from using private or public transport. Please click here for further information and how to contact.

If you are aware of any other services available please do let us know by emailing us.

 

Some Urine Infections Can Now Be Treated By Your Local Pharmacist

Urinary Tract Infections (UTI’s) are common, especially in ladies, and can give symptoms which include burning and stinging on passing urine, passing urine more often or the need to pass urine more immediately. You may also notice your urine appears more cloudy.

These symptoms may often settle by drinking more fluid, but if the symptoms don’t improve then antibiotics maybe required. Normally this requires an appointment with a GP.

But if you are a lady, aged 16-84 years, and not currently taking antibiotics, your Pharmacist at Southam Pharmacy maybe able to dispense you the antibiotic nitrofurantoin which can be taken for 3 days to treat a urine infection, without the need to see a GP. To book an appointment with your pharmacist you can call Southam Pharmacy on 01926 812287.

But if you are more unwell with symptoms of Kidney pain (in back under the ribs), muscle aches, fever (temperature more than 37.8 degrees), chills (rigors), or vomiting then it is still best to see your GP in the first instance.

Warwickshire County Council highlights support for those experiencing loneliness

Warwickshire County Council wants to ensure that anyone who feels lonely and isolated over the festive period is aware of the relevant organisations that can provide support and help at this time of year.

In the UK it is estimated that there are half a million older people who go at least five or six days a week without seeing or speaking to anyone. And with the ongoing issues that the pandemic presents, it many limit the opportunities for people to meet up with friends and loved ones.

The council’s Winter Wellness campaign is highlighting how Warwickshire residents can help themselves and each other to stay mentally and physically healthy during the winter months. For more information visit https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/winterwellness

And the council’s social media channels will be sharing information too. Follow us on Facebook @WarwickshireCountyCouncil, Twitter @Warks_CC, Instagram @bestwarwickshire

Cllr Margaret Bell, Portfolio Holder for Adult Social Care and Health said: “We want to reassure those residents who may be facing a Christmas on their own, that there is support out there for you either at the end of the phone or via a tablet or smartphone. There are so many opportunities to get involved with online groups, learn a new skill via our Adult and Community Learning Team or chat on an online book club about a book you’ve borrowed from one of our libraries on an online book club chat. The opportunities to connect with people is endless. These are just a few of the many opportunities to connect with people."

In addition to the online signposts to help via social media channels, there are also phone-based services that run throughout the year.

  • Older people can speak to a real person via The Silver Line 0800 4 70 80 90 and Age UK 0800 169 6565, which is open 24/7.

  • Younger people can access help via ChildLine 0800 1111 and Get Connected, a national helpline for anyone under 25 years of age, 0808 808 4994.

  • Bereavement – Cruse, 0808 808 1677 and The Good Grief Trust 0800 2600

For more information on learning opportunities visit www.warwickshire.gov.uk/acl

Information on Warwickshire Libraries Services can be found on www.warwickshire.gov.uk/libraries

Christmas marks the start of a wide-ranging loneliness and social isolation campaign that will officially launch early next year. The campaign will include recruitment of Social Ambassadors from local communities who will help to spread awareness messages and information offering support and guidance to those in need.

Further information about becoming a Social Ambassador will be launched in the New Year but if you would like to sign up for more information please email newsteam@warwickshire.gov.uk

Missed Appointments Hurt Us All: Please Help Us To Help You

At St Wulfstan Surgery we have very low rates of missed appointments. This is one reason why we are able to offer such a fantastic service. And it is another reason why we are thankful to our wonderful patients who make that possible.

Despite this low rate of missed appointment we have noticed a slight increase in missed appointments recently. This saddens us, because for every missed appointment, we have lost the opportunity to help someone who really needed it. And it is worth noting that missed GP appointments costs the NHS £216m per year.

For that reason, please help us keep our missed appointment rates low by following these tips:

  • Please book appointments only when you need them. Many conditions such as colds, coughs and sore throats will normally get better given a little more time. In such cases it is often sensible to speak to your pharmacist first.

  • If you book an appointment and cannot make it, please call reception or use the NHS App or Patient Access to cancel it. This way we can offer the appointment to someone else to give them the help they need.

  • Please remember that telephone appointments are just as valuable as face to face appointments. And therefore missed telephone appointments count as missed appointments. So if you will be unable to keep your timed telephone appointment please cancel it before hand.

  • We do record all missed appointments, and if appointments are frequently missed you may be asked to leave the surgery.

Thank you for helping us, to help you!

Happy New Year To All!!