MINCHINHAMPTON SURGERY
Telephone 01453 883793
  
Opening Hours 8.30am - 6.30pm
Monday - Friday
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Minchinhampton Surgery

For information about Minchinhampton Surgery Charitable Trust click here  

Read about our Patient Survey by scrolling down this page or click here to go to a Summary

We have a vacancy for a secretary/administrator please click here for details

The Surgery,
Bell Lane,
Minchinhampton.
Gloucestershire, GL6 9JF

Dr. Susie Weir
Dr. David Pouncey
Dr. Andy Simpson
Dr. Anne Cain
Dr. Hein le Roux

OFFICE HOURS

Monday to Friday 8.30am to 6.30pm

SURGERY TIMES

Surgeries are held, Monday to Friday,
8.30 to 10.40am & 4.00 to 6.00pm.

Extended hours: Routine GP appointments Mondays from 6.15am and Wednesdays until 8.15pm

(Please note the office is only open to check patients in during extended hours and phones will still transfer to the emergency Out of Hours service)

Appointments

01453 883793

Repeat Prescriptions

(8.30 to 10.30am Monday to Friday)
01453 889678

 What do I do if I have forgotten my password?

 Unfortunately, we cannot search our system if you have forgotten your password. This is due to security reasons. You will need to complete another Request for Registration so that your account can be reset. After 48 hours your new pin will be available to collect in person from Reception. Please bring photo identification with you. Using your new pin, you will then need to re-register and choose another password. We hope that you understand this security measure.

Patient Survey 

Our local Patient Participation Report

For the past few months Minchinhampton Surgery has been trying to find out how we can improve our service to patients and also how patients feel about the surgery and staff.

Our Patient Participation Group (PPG) consists of eight patients ranging from young working mothers to more senior members of our community. The group meets regularly with the doctors and staff from the Surgery. Ideally we would like our Patient Group to be truly representative of our patient population. However we realise that with patients’ busy lives it can sometimes be difficult to commit time to such groups so we have also sought ideas for our survey from as wide a patient population as possible both in the Surgery and virtually via email. We were pleased to receive suggestions from all patient groups in 10 year age bands between 18 and over 85.

Thank you to all the patients who submitted their ideas for the types of questions we needed to include in our survey. These were discussed with our Patient Participation Group and a survey drawn up and printed. Five hundred questionnaires were handed out in March 2012. We realised it was also important to involve those who may not attend the surgery regularly, so fifty patients were selected randomly and rung at home to collect their views.  A link to the on-line survey was also included on our website. We received a total of 457 responses: about 50% on paper and 50% on-line. These were analysed by an independent company ‘Electoral Reform Services Research’ and a report produced. Click here for the full report or else you can read the summary here.

The results of our survey were circulated to our PPG before meeting again to work out priorities for an Action Plan. Some patient members not able to attend emailed us their comments. The Action Plan can be read by clicking here.

Actions suggested are around information for patients: information for young people and “signposting” of additional services available within the Practice. In our survey we had asked what patients thought about a ‘drop in surgery’ where patients needing to see a doctor, just turned up and waited in turn. This was relevant to a percentage of the population but survey results were inconclusive and the doctors were concerned regarding continuity of care and inappropriate waiting times. We are therefore not intending introducing this type of surgery. However we will be continuing with our morning telephone triage service where patients with an immediate health concern or minor illness can speak to our Senior Nurse Practitioner or a GP.

We also asked patients their opinion on a dedicated disabled parking space on the road immediately in front of the surgery entrance. Only 22% of survey respondents were in favour of this. When discussed with the PPG it was considered the existing parking provision was adequate and could prevent those temporarily disabled from accessing this space.

Many of the areas for improvement were around the physical environment of the Surgery; the waiting room being cramped, over crowded and airless and some consulting rooms being too small. Some years ago we installed heat reflective blinds for ceiling lights, a fan and water cooler in the waiting room after previous discussions with our PPG. Patients acknowledged many problems could only be solved by new premises. Unfortunately the Practice has not yet received the go-ahead for our plans for a new Surgery in Minchinhampton.

No changes to core hours or extended hours were deemed necessary. These remain as:

OFFICE HOURS
Monday to Friday 8.30am to 6.30pm (we do not close for lunch)
Phone lines open from 8am for emergencies

SURGERY TIMES
Surgeries are held, Monday to Friday,
8.30 to 10.40am & 4.00 to 6.00pm.
(Additional surgeries are sometimes held later in the morning or earlier in afternoon please ask at Reception if this would be more convenient for you)

Extended Hours sessions are covered by different GPs on a rota basis:
 Monday  6.15am -8am
Wednesday  6.30pm – 8.15pm

 

News from the Surgery
Many congratulations to Dr Mike Thomas who became Prof Mike Thomas on 1st March 2012. He now holds the Chair of Primary Care Research at Southampton University. We are pleased that he will still be working at Minchinhampton on a Monday as an Academic GP, leading on Respiratory Medicine. Due to this new role he has stood down as a partner and Dr Susie Weir is now senior partner. Asthma Clinics have moved from a Wednesday to a Monday afternoon and will continue to be run by Prof. Thomas and Senior Nurse Practitioner Carol Stonham.
Congratulations also to Dr Alex Harris, who gave birth to a baby boy, Rowan, in January. She will be on maternity leave until the end of the summer.
We were sad to say goodbye to Registrars Dr Penny Baker and Dr Iona Hay who left the Practice at the end of January to move on to their next appointments. We have two new registrars starting in August who will be with the Practice for a year.
Two of our hard working receptionists, Sandra Gale and Shirley Connock, retired in February this year after many years of dedicated service. We are hoping that we will be able to coax them back occasionally to help cover during staff holidays. We are pleased to welcome our new receptionist Jasmin Black.

Patient Survey

Thank you to all the patients who contributed thoughts on what questions we should be asking in the 2012 Patient Survey. Minchinhampton Surgery Patient Participation Group (PPG) has also been involved in deciding on the final questions and the survey is now live from our website. We would encourage all patients to complete a survey on-line. Just click on the link from our from our home page. Paper copies of the survey will shortly be available at Reception for those patients who prefer this.

Stroud Food Bank
The Surgery has recently become a referrer to Stroud Foodbank supporting local people in crisis. The Trussell Trust's UK foodbank network works in partnership with local churches and communities to open foodbanks nationwide. There are over 100 foodbanks in the UK. Last year UK foodbanks fed over 60,000 people. If you feel you may be eligible for help please ask your doctor, nurse or midwife for a voucher. Vouchers can be exchanged at a distribution centre in Stroud or Dursley for a supply of food items (enough for 3 days). The Foodbank is always grateful for donations of food and would also like to hear from those who may have time to give as a volunteer. More information is available at www.strouddistrict.foodbank.org.uk  

Art Lift
We hope that we will be able to restart our Art sessions soon with artist Sue Collins. Unfortunately the funding for the project came to an end in 2011 and alternative funding has yet to be secured.

Brainy app
A brain health app has been launched in Britain by the Bupa Health Foundation and Alzheimer’s Australia.
Based on latest research that links brain health and a reduced risk of dementia, to a healthy heart and cardiovascular system, ‘BrainyApp’ is the first dementia risk reduction iPhone app. It helps users monitor and improve the physical, mental, dietary and social aspects of their life style.
Jeremy Hughes, chief executive, Alzheimer’s Society, said ‘Most people know how to reduce their risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke but they don’t realise that the same healthy lifestyle choices may also lower the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and other kinds of dementia. The idea is that what is good for the heart is also good for the brain.’
‘BrainyApp’ is available as a free download for users of iPhone, iPod and iPad devices. More information from www.bupa.co.uk/brainy-app 

 
Practice Boundaries
The last government introduced the idea of abolishing practice boundaries. Many GPs were against the complete abolition of practice boundaries because of the potential negative impact on the continuity of care.
After a period of consultation the current government has decided to keep boundaries. However, there will be a one year pilot in three cities which will allow patients to register at a practice near to where they work.
We realise this has led to some confusion with patients wanting to register, or stay registered, at Minchinhampton. Our current practice boundary is agreed with the Primary Care Trust and is based on being able to safely cover home visits for patients within a reasonable travelling distance and time.

If you have moved please do remember to inform Reception so we can check you are still within our Practice area. It is very important we always have your up to date address and contact details, in case we ever need to contact you.

Minchinhampton Surgery  PPG

We had another goodbye, with chairman Jonathan Ionides resigning as chairman due to his move from Minchinhampton. He will be much missed as an enthusiastic and committed chairman. Thanks to Gerald Ford, organiser of the very successful PPG transport service, stepping in as chair until the AGM later in the spring. If you would like to become involved in this patient group please do leave your contact details at Reception. We would love to hear from you!
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