Shiregreen Medical Centre

Fear of Flying

Patients often come to us requesting the doctor or nurse to prescribe diazepam for fear of flying or assist with sleep during flights.
There are a number of very good reasons why prescribing this drug is not recommended.
Diazepam is a sedative, which means it makes you sleepy and more relaxed. This may mean you are less able to react to emergency situations putting yourself and others at risk
Sedative medication can make you fall asleep. This is an unnatural sleep and means you move less than you would do during natural sleep. This puts you at increased risk of developing a blood clot, called a Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT). DVT’s are dangerous and can be fatal.
While most people find benzodiazepines like diazepam relaxing some people encounter increased agitation and aggression. This may cause you to behave in a way you may not do normally and could impact your safety and the safety of other passengers
According to the prescribing guidelines doctors follow (British National Formulary) diazepam is contraindicated (not allowed) for treating phobias (fears).
Your doctor would be taking a significant legal risk by prescribing against these guidelines.

Given the above we will no longer be providing Diazepam or similar drugs for flight anxiety and instead suggest the below aviation industry recommended flight anxiety courses.

For further information:

Click here for fly and be calm…
Click here fore fearless flying from Easyjet…
Click here for flying with confidence from British Airways…
Click here for flying without fear…

Shiregreen Medical Centre Patient Appointment Survey Results

Please see below for the results of our recent Patient Appointment Survey. I’m delighted over 600 of you took time to complete this for us, your opinions are important to us. With over 7,700 patients we cannot take everyone’s view into consideration but we feel this sample of your opinion is significant enough (7% of patients responded) and representative of the general view of our patient population.
We will continue to gather data over the coming months to enable us to look at ways in which we can facilitate some changes.
In summary this is what you told us

1. 22% of you LIKE the current appointment booking system, whilst over 73% of you didn’t like it. This matches the feedback we already had from you either verbally or written in complaints and we will look at different ways of working that may be more preferable
2. 90% of you found it difficult to get through to us on the phone. NHSE have instructed all practices to upgrade their phone to iCloud telephony – this allows for a queue and a call back system. We have already invested in this upgraded system a number of years ago but are looking into the call back facility which may be useful for you
3. Over 92% of you said you would prefer to be able to call us at a more convenient time for you to book appointments. We will look into different ways of working that may enable you to do this, but at the same time we have to consider actual data which relates to patients non attending pre booked appointments – the majority of patients who fail to attend appointments are to appointments that are prebooked. We cannot continue “Did not attend” rates to increase as this wastes appointments and time other patients could have had with clinicians
4. Over 70% of you said you are highly likely/ likely use a web link or app to book appointments with us. Whilst this could never be the only way to book appointments if the majority of our patients could use this type of system it would free up the phone lines for those who aren’t able to or prefer not to use this technology. We are currently trialling a similar system for contacting us through “Patient Triage”. We will look at the results of the survey and the outcome of the trial to determine how we can develop this
5. Over 50% of you said you would or would sometimes provide more information to the receptionist so your query could be dealt with quicker by a GP. Again, we will look at systems and procedures that may enable this for you.
6. 95% of you said you would prefer more options to book appointments in advance. We will look into different ways of working that may enable you to do this, but at the same time we have to consider actual data which relates to patients non attending pre booked appointments – the majority of patients who fail to attend appointments are to appointments that are prebooked. We cannot continue “Did not attend” rates to increase as this wastes appointments and time other patients could have had with clinicians
7. Almost 60% of you said you were aware of the additional services and appointments available to you at local hubs, that’s great to hear as these services are integral to primary care and the GP/Patient offer in 2023
8. Over 63% of you said you were aware that 111 services were available at any time and when we have no remaining appointment availability for the day. Whilst we see resistance from some patients to use 111 due to the misconceptions of what it is for, I’m pleased that most of you understand the services 111 offer.
   So thank you to everyone who completed this snapshot survey for us. It will enable us to look into improving our services in the areas that matter most to you. I will keep you updated on further findings and actions we will take as a result.

Shiregreen Medical Centre and Melrose Surgery Appointment Survey

Q1 Are you happy with the current appointment booking system – Answered 610, Skipped 5
ANSWER CHOICES AND RESPONSES
Yes – 22.30% (136 answered)
No – 73.44% (448 answered)
I’ve never used it – 3.28% (20 answered)
I don’t know how to book appointments – 0.98% (6 answered)
TOTAL 610 answers

Q2 Do you find it difficult to get through to us by phone at 8am? – Answered 604, Skipped 11
Yes – 89.90% (543 answered)
No – 6.29% (38 answered)
I’ve never called at this time 3.81% (23 answered)
TOTAL 604 answers

Q3 Would you prefer to be able to call at a more convenient time for you to book an appointment? – Answered 608, Skipped 7
ANSWER CHOICES AND RESPONSES
Yes – 92.27% (561 Answered)
No – 7.73% (47 Answered)
TOTAL 608 answers

Q4 If it were available how likely is it that you would prefer to use an app or a link on our website to book an appointment? – Answered 613, Skipped 2
ANSWER CHOICES AND RESPONSES
Very Likely – 52.85% (324 Answered)
Likely – 19.25% (118 Answered)
Neither Likely nor unlikely – 9.46% (58 Answered)
Unlikely – 7.83% (48 Answered)
Very unlikely – 10.60% (65 Answered)
TOTAL 613 answers

Q5 Would you be happy to provide the receptionists with more information so they can speak with a Doctor immediately whilst you’re on the phone so the Doctor can decide immediately how best we can help you when you call? – Answered 615, Skipped 0
ANSWER CHOICES AND RESPONSES
Yes – 42.11% (259 Answered)
Sometimes – 13.50% (83 Answered)
Depends why I’m calling – 36.75% (226 Answered)
No – 7.64% (47 Answered)
TOTAL 615 answers

Q6 Would you like more availability to book appointments in advance? – Answered 607, Skipped 8
ANSWER CHOICES AND RESPONSES
Yes – 95.06% (577 Answered)
No – 0.33% ( 2 Answered)
Not bothered either way – 4.61% (28 Answered)
TOTAL 607 answers

Q7 Are you aware that we are part of a network of practices that work together to offer patient appointments for Drs, Nurses, Physio, Pharmacist and Health Care Assistants at local hubs out of hours? – Answered 614, Skipped 1
ANSWER CHOICES AND RESPONSES
Yes – 58.31% (358 Answered)
No – 41.69% (256 Answered)
TOTAL 614 answers

Q8 Are you aware that one of the functions of the 111 service is for patients to contact them when we have no more availability that day for 111 to help you get the right treatment or advice when you need it? – Answered 612, Skipped 3
ANSWER CHOICES AND RESPONSES
Yes – 63.73% (390 Answered)
No – 12.42% (76 Answered)
I thought I could only call them when you’re closed – 14.87% (91 Answered)
I didn’t know NHS 111 clinicians and call advisors can give patients the advice they need without using another service such as their GP or A&E – 8.99% (55 Answered)
TOTAL 612 answers

Local Playgroups

Best Start Toddler Group

Best start Toddler group is a group for parents and under 5s to play and to meet other parents and carers of young children living in the local area. The best start toddlers group is held in 3 different locations which include Shiregreen neighbourhood centre which runs on a Thursday 9:00am-11:30am. The address for Address for the group is: Shiregreen neighbourhood centre Westnall Rd, Shiregreen, Sheffield S5 0AA.There is a charge of £1.50 per adult and child and 50p per additional child (snack is included in the price). The second group is held at concord sports centre on a Tuesday 12:30pm-2.15pm, there is a charge of £2 per adult and child and 50p charge per additional child. The address for the group is concords sports centre Shiregreen lane s5 6af.The third group is held at Shiregreen community centre on a Monday 9:30am-11:30am. There is a charge of £2 per adult and child 50p per additional child. The address for the group is : Shiregreen community centre sicey avenue s5 0RN. For all three of the groups you don’t need to book onto the groups you can just turn up. For any enquiries for any of the groups call Nicola 07495965312.

Baby and Toddler Session

Baby and toddler time is a session for under-fives and their carers. The session involves activities including musical instruments and soft play. The group runs on Fridays 10:30am-11:30am. There is no charge to the group and the address for the group is Parson Cross Library 320 Wordsworth Avenue, Sheffield, S5 8NL.

Trinity Tots

Trinity Tots is a playgroup session for over 1s and their parents and carers. The group runs on a Thursday 10am-11:30am, there is a charge of £2 per session and 50p per additional child. The group is held at the main hall at Hillsborough Trinity Methodist Church, Middlewood Road. The group is run by Group run by volunteer mums. Helpers always welcome. For further information call 0114 249 4182.

Baby Group

St Johns Owlerton run a baby group on a Tuesday 9:30-11:30pm, it is a group for parents and toddlers to meet up, have a chat and has a baby play space. For more information contact Bec on 07904371243, bec@stjb.org.uk . The address for the group is Owlerton Vicarage,Forbes Road Hillsborough, Sheffield S6 2NW.

Mini Kids Group

Shirecliffe community centre run a group for 0-5 year olds and their parents and carers. The group involves play, stories, songs and craft. The group runs on a Friday 10-11:30pm. For more information contact 0114 2326201. The address of the group is 349 Shirecliffe Road, Shirecliffe, Sheffield S5 8XL.

Friends and Family Test

The Friends and Family Test (FFT) is an important feedback tool that supports the fundamental principle that people who use the services should have the opportunity to provide feedback on their experience. From 1st December GP practices must give this opportunity to every patient to feed back through FFT.

It asks people if they would recommend the services they have used and offers a range of responses. When combined with supplementary follow-up questions the FFT provides a mechanism to highlight both the good and poor patient experience. This kind of feedback is vital in transforming NHS services and supporting patient choice.

The feedback gathered through the FFT is being used in NHS organisations across the country to stimulate local improvement and empower staff to carry out the sorts of changes that make a real difference to patients and their care.

The results of the FFT are published at monthly intervals on both NHS England and NHS Choices websites.

Patients will be offered the opportunity to complete a paper feedback form or complete the online test under Have Your Say, Friends and Family Test, please find this above under feedback.

Diabetic Patients

As per the Sheffield formulary update, TEE2 meters (and test strips) are now the first line choice for all type 2 diabetic patients; it is only for those patients who need to self monitor their blood glucose as per specific medical advice.

You can discuss this with the practice Pharmacist or Nurse if more information is needed.

Always attend your routine diabetic review with the Practice Nurse or GP.

Always dispose of sharps safely.

Medication Update

You can now order your prescriptions in the following ways :-

- Patient Access, please contact reception for details
- Email sheffieldccg.shiregreenpatient@nhs.net – please state your full name, dob and the medications you require
- Via your pharmacy, please speak to your pharmacist to see if they offer this service
- Order at the surgery by putting your written request in the prescription order box, located in the foyer
- During the Covid pandemic, for a limited time we are allowing patients to order their medications over the phone to limit the amount of patients that are entering the building – please call the surgery between 11am and 1pm weekdays – if you wish to order in this way

We have created a new section to our website, available under ‘prescriptions’, where we will advise you of medication related updates or information. I hope you find this new section helpful.

Patient Participation Group - Recruiting New Members!

We are looking to recruit new members to our patient participation group, which meets on a quarterly basis. We would like members from a variety of backgrounds to help make the group representative of our practice population. We really value input from our patients to help us improve the service we provide.

We have also set up an email group with the aim of collecting feedback from a wider group of patients.

Please contact Rachel Kershaw, our PPG Coordinator or fill in the online form (on the ‘Patient Participation Group’ section of this website) to register your interest for either of these groups. Please specify which group (or if both) you wish to join.

An update about our Improved Family Planning Services

Chlamydia Screening, including postal tests available free.

Implanon (contraceptive implants) and coil fitting – Available with our ACP, Chantelle ; please book an appointment first to discuss this fully.

Emergency Contraception – within 72 hours. Do try to phone the surgery before 10:30, and ask the morning clinical team for details of how we can help.