Doctors Surgery

                                   Drs. Jones, Larcombe, Hearmon, Robertshaw,  Anderson & Macdougal
                                    Fallscroft, Butterwick Road, Fishburn, Stockton-On-Tees. TS21 4AP
                                                   Telephone 01740 620284   Fax. 01740 623870     
                                                       Emergency And all out of hours call out
                                                                   Telephone 01740 620300


This practice aims to provide a comprehensive range of high quality care to all its patients. We provide all the services available through primary care and take every opportunity  to always have the best care available.
General
We will treat you with respect and courtesy and help you to make the best of our service. Any advice on treatment will be based on clinical need .We will always be willing to explain our findings and the advice we give to you including choices of treatment. We will maintain strict confidentiality of your details and will only divulge information to a third party with your explicit consent.
In return we ask you to…..
Treat all of us with respect and courtesy Accept that your health is your own responsibility. Learn from us how to deal with common ailments, which do not need professional attention notify us straight away, if you change your address.
Telephone access
Calls will be answered as quickly as possible during normal working hours. Out of hours the telephone system will either connect you to the duty doctor, or to a message taking service which contacts the doctor for you.
In return we to ask you
Keep calls as brief as possible. Be patient
Avoid calling between 9.00 a.m. And 11.a.m.- See visits and prescriptions.
Appointments
We run an appointment system but urgent cases will always be seen on the same day.
You may choose which doctor you wish to see. This may not be the doctor with whom you are registered.
Urgent cases will be prioritized by the duty doctor and seen as soon as possible.
In return we ask you to
Request appointments as soon as possible.
Cancel any appointments you cannot keep so that the time can be used for another patient.
Request emergency or urgent appointments only when absolutely necessary.
Observe the rule of " one patient, one appointment".
Waiting times
We do our best to keep to appointment times. It is, however, in the nature of the profession that consultation times vary. Ideally we should see everyone within 20 minutes of their appointment time. When we do run late we will try to keep you informed so that you have the opportunity to re-book if necessary.
In return we ask you to…
Appreciate that often the waiting time is beyond our control. The doctor may be on emergency call, for example. Attend morning surgeries where possible. Attend punctually. Appreciate that the precise time of consultation cannot be assured.
Out of hours services/home visits
The medical centre is the best place for us to see our patients. Sometimes, however, it may be necessary to see you at home. Requests for home visits will be assessed by a doctor. Some time each day is dedicated to home visits. The practice, in partnership with the two-doctor partnership in Stillington, provides 24-hour medical cover. The doctor who attends for night visits will be conducting normal surgeries the following day.
In return we ask you to…
Give clear directions to your house Avoid requesting home visits unless the patient is too ill to be brought to the surgery Ensure that the requests for home visits are made before 10:00am.
Confine requests for out of hours visits to complaints that really cannot wait until the next days surgery.
Prescriptions
Patients may order their repeat prescriptions either in person or by telephone, between 10:00am and 5:00pm., Monday to Friday. Prescriptions will be normally available within 48 hours.
In return we ask you to …
Give reasonable notice when ordering repeat prescriptions. Avoid asking for prescriptions on weekends and bank holidays Avoid asking for repeat prescriptions during general consultations.
Investigations/results
Any tests undertaken will be dealt with promptly most results take between 7-10 days to come back. You may have to see the doctor to obtain your results, but usually the practice nurse can tell you.
In return we ask you to…
Ensure that you always telephone for your results after 11:00am.
Referrals
From time to time it is necessary to refer patients to a consultant for further care. Letters of referral will be sent from the practice as quickly as possible
In return we ask you to…
Ensure that you keep us informed of changes to your address.
Recognize that there will be some waiting period before the consultant can see you.
Access to records
In accordance with the data protection act 1984 abd the access to health records act 1990, patients may request to see their medical records. Such requests are by appointment and are subject to an administration charge. No information will be released without your consent unless we are legally obliged to do so.
In return we ask you to…
Ensure that your written authorization accompanies any requests you have authorized for medical information.
Sick notes
Your doctor has a responsibility to provide a sick note after the first week of absence if there is a clinical need.  Self-certification forms are available from your employer for the first 7 days.
In return we ask you to…
Not request sick notes for the first 7 days.
Appreciate that the doctor has a responsibility to the DSS to justify sick notes.
Changing doctor
Patients have a right to register with the doctor of their choice, subject to that doctors acceptance.
Review / monitoring
We undertake to review and monitor the services we provide to ensure that our commitment to the best care remains constant. Your views are important to us in determining whether we are achieving our aims. Comments are always welcome and may be lodged in the reception suggestion boxes or with the practice manager.
Partners in health
The care of our patient is fundamental to the service we provide. It should be recognized that the patient has responsibility in part for his or her own well being. We may prescribe treatments to aid a particular complaint or condition and/or modifications in lifestyle to promote the patients health.
In return we ask you to…
Comply with any treatment recommended or prescribed.
To try to live as healthy a lifestyle as possible and ask for help and advice as necessary.
Complaints
Complaints about any aspect of our service or staff are treated very seriously. Any patient who feels that they have grounds for complaint should address their grievance to the practice manager.
Written complaints will be acknowledged, in writing, within 5 days of receipt. Verbal complaints will be acknowledged at the time.
The practice manager will conduct an investigation into the cause of the complaint. The complainant will then be offered an explanation and, if appropriate, an apology, at a meeting if desired. Should this not be satisfactory to the complainant, a second investigation will be conducted and an explanatory letter written by a partner who has not been involved in the cause for complaint. County Durham health authority (CDHA) will be informed.
If the stage 2 investigation still does not satisfy the complainant, they will be invited to discuss the matter with the partner involved in the second stage. Should there be no resolution of their problem at this point, the complainant will be advised to direct the complaint to cdha. The practice will forward all documentary evidence to cdha.
Referrals
Sedgefield primary care group enters into contracts with local hospitals and trusts to obtain a range of services. Our principal providers (covering 90% of our care) are:
North tees and Hartlepool Nhs Trust
South Tees acute Nhs trust
Bishop Auckland hospitals Nhs Trust
South Durham Health care Nhs Trust
County Durham priority services Nhs Trust
Patients are also referred to other hospitals for a variety of reasons. Some may need to go to regional centres of excellence, or they may prefer to return to a consultant who has seen them before.
Waiting times
We are committed to meeting the regionally recommended waiting times of:-12 months for inpatient and day case procedures. -26 weeks for outpatients clinics.
The hospitals with which we contract are already meeting these targets. Data on hospital performance is collected by cdha and is available for inspection.

July 1999