Newsletter - December 2020
Published: 06 November 2020
Christmas Bank HolidaysPlease note we are expecting the surgery to be
CLOSED on the bank holidays Friday 25th December, Monday 28th December and Friday 1st January 2021.
If the Government or Public Health England require us to stay open for the bank holidays due to the coronavirus pandemic, we will inform patients via the website, Facebook and posters at the surgery. At the time of writing, we are expecting to be closed as usual.
Please contact NHS 111 if you need medical help and assistance when we are closed, and they will direct you to the most appropriate service. For life threatening emergencies call 999.
Repeat PrescriptionsPlease ensure you have enough medication in advance of the holiday period. Last ordering date for repeats before Christmas will be Tuesday 22nd December. Orders can be collected on Thursday 24th December before 6pm in Willingham, and before 1pm in Longstanton.
Last repeat orders for New Year are on Tuesday 29th December. Collection on New Year’s Eve 31st December before 6pm at Willingham, and before 1pm at Longstanton.
Help us to help youYour GP practice is open and if you need to see your GP, please ring us on 01954 260230 or visit our website for details. You can also call NHS 111. Please do not come to the surgery unless you have an appointment.
A clinician will speak with you over the phone before booking your face to face appointment. Appointments are also being delivered online and over the telephone. If you are asked to come into the surgery for a face-to-face appointment, please remember to wear a face covering. Measures are in place to keep you safe from infection during your visit to the surgery.
If your query is in relation to COVID-19 please visit NHS 111 online in the first instance. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
Flu programmeOver 65 and/or high risk:If you are aged 65 or over or have a health condition which entitles you to receive the NHS flu jab and have not yet received one please can you contact the Surgery and let us know. We will need to try and acquire stock from the NHS, so in order to do this we need to know how much to order.
Under 65:At the time of writing, we are still awaiting guidance from public health regarding the extended flu vaccination programme for those age 50-64 who do not normally receive the vaccine and are not in the higher risk groups.
When we have more information as to how this programme will roll out, and how many vaccines we will be allocated from the NHS, we will contact those eligible via text message and letter to invite them in for the flu vaccination.
Please do not contact the practice now, we will contact you when the vaccines are available on the NHS. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation
Carers MeetingDue to the pandemic, the carers' meetings are still currently postponed until further notice. They will be reinstated as soon as it is safe to do so. In the meantime, we would like to continue to support carers in our local community in any way possible. If you are a carer for someone and need advice and financial or emotional support, please contact Sue Lawson at
[email protected] or 01954 260230.
Merry ChristmasAnd finally, we would like to wish every one of our patients a Merry Christmas! This year has been one of the most challenging years in the history of the practice. We understand the many changes to our procedures have caused some frustration and things are now very different to how they use to be. We would like to thank you for your understanding, patience and co-operation as we continue to battle the pandemic through the winter pressures. We are very grateful for all the support we have received.
We wish you a healthy, happy and safe Christmas, whatever that may look like this year. We will continue to put your safety and health at the heart of everything we do as we move into 2021.
Stay safe and take care of each other