Smokers encouraged to join Stoptober
Smokers encouraged to join Stoptober
Stoptober is back, calling on smokers in England to join the 2.5 million others who have made a quit attempt with the campaign since it launched a decade ago in 2012.
Nearly 6 million adults in England still smoke, and it remains the single biggest behavioural cause of preventable death, with 64,000 deaths a year.
If you are a smoker, quitting is one of the best things you can do for your health, allowing you to start moving better, breathe more easily – and giving you more money to spend.
Join the thousands of others and start your quitting journey not only in October but throughout the whole year!
Just search ‘Stoptober’ for more information and free tools to help you quit or contact us to book an appointment for smoking cessation with our HCA.
FREE NHS app
Download the NHS app today
The NHS App gives patients more control over their health and care and aims to encourage everyone, where possible, to use the NHS app as the ‘digital front door’ to health services. In South West London 55% of patients aged 13+ have already registered for the NHS app.
The app can provide people secure digital access to their own medical records, find trusted information about their health, contact their practice, order repeat prescriptions and view test results online.
The NHS App gives you 24/7 access to a range of NHS services all in one place:
You can use the NHS App to:
✅ Check your registered decision
✅ Choose to donate some or all of your organs
✅ Request a new repeat prescription
✅ Choose which pharmacy to collect from
📲 You can access your COVID Pass on the free NHS App!
Download the #NHSApp now
Patient Participation Group Meeting
admin
Dear Patient,
Dr Jogiya and the Team at Wandsworth Medical Centre would like to invite you for the virtual Patient Participation Group meeting in September/October 2024. The new date will be confirmed soon.
MMR National Vaccination Catch-up Campaign 2024
Measles cases are rising in England this year and the majority of confirmed cases were in London.
The vaccination rate is lower than the 95% target set by WHO and as low as 60% in some areas of London.
The MMR vaccine is a safe and effective combined vaccine, after 2 doses:
- around 99% of people will be protected against measles and rubella
- around 88% of people will be protected against mumps
People who are vaccinated against mumps, but still catch it, are less likely to have serious complications or be admitted to hospital. Protection against measles, mumps and rubella starts to develop around 2 weeks after having the MMR vaccine.
Please submit the online request form if you want your record to be checked for any missing MMR doses and we can then book an appointment with the nurse for you to have it done.
The way you book an appointment has changed
Last year in July, we launched an online triage system. The online form can be accessed via our website and will mean you can contact the surgery at any time about a medical or administrative issue. You answer a few short questions on the form, and you will get a response from the surgery within 1 working day. This allows us to perform an on the day needs assessment and offer you the most appropriate outcome without the need to be on hold for a long time, or the need to come into the surgery.
What should I use this form for?
You can use this form for anything you would usually contact the surgery for such as requesting an appointment, medical issues you want to discuss with a doctor or nurse, repeat prescriptions, or admin issues like getting a sick (fit) note or test results. We aim to reply to you on the same working day if we receive your request on time. If you think you need help before then, you should call the surgery.
Please note that the submitted forms will only be read during office hours. The forms will not be read on the weekends (Saturdays and Sundays) or on bank holidays. If you need urgent help out of hours please contact 111 or 999 if this is an emergency
What questions will I be asked?
If you have a medical query, you’ll be asked to describe it, how long it’s been going on for, and what you’re worried about. For admin, you can choose from asking about test results, repeat prescriptions, fit/sick notes, referrals, a doctor’s letter, or something else
What details do I need to be able to fill in the form?
You’ll be asked for your name, date of birth, postcode, gender, and your contact number. If you have your mobile phone to hand, then you can choose to receive a code via text message to enter into the website. This allows the staff at the practice to locate your record faster.
How long will the form take to complete?
The form should only take a few minutes to complete. If you have any issues or can’t fill the form out, please contact the surgery and we will be able to help you complete your request.
Why are we making this change?
This change should make it easier to submit requests to the practice and ensure that requests are seen by the most appropriate member of staff and dealt with in an appropriate timeframe. Appointments will be prioritised according to health need, rather than who gets their call answered first.
The benefits of using online consultations are:
- Easy to access – it should only take a couple of minutes to fill out your information
- No waiting on hold on the phone
- Your request will be seen by the right person
- Convenience – send your request over whenever you need it, rather than when you can get through on the phone
- Your GP might be able to help more quickly and easily, for example with a phone call, or by referring you directly to the service you need, such as physiotherapy
You can now book using either of the links below:
Free NHS lung health check - 55 to 74
Are you 55-74, live in Wandsworth, and smoke or used to smoke?
You can get a free
NHS lung health check.
Lung health checks are quick, simple, and a good way of spotting lung-related problems early on.
Please contact us for more information and to check if you are eligible.
For more information visit the link below or call 020 7352 8607
Your next poo could save your life
Your next poo could save your life
We are supporting a London-wide campaign to encourage more patients to do their free NHS bowel cancer screening home test, which checks if you could have bowel cancer.
People who are the right age are sent a free NHS FIT (Faecal Immunochemical Test) kit every two years. You use it to collect a small sample of poo and post it back to an NHS lab.
The campaign by NHS London, “Your next poo could save your life”, urges more people to use their kit – a message we wholeheartedly endorse.
Screening can help prevent bowel cancer and find it at an early stage when it’s easier to treat. People who complete their screening are 25% less likely to die of bowel cancer.
The kits are for people with no symptoms and most people get the all-clear.
If you are aged 56, 58 (on or after 16 May 2022) or 60 to 74 and we have your correct address, you will be sent a kit every 2 years. Please use it. By April 2025, bowel cancer screening kits will be for everyone aged 50 to 74 in England.
To find out more and hear from other Londoners about their experience of bowel cancer screening, visit www.healthylondon.org/bcs.
If you have symptoms of bowel cancer which last for three weeks or more, please contact the practice and ask for an appointment.
Flu & Covid-19 Booster Vaccination Programme 2023-24
Flu & Covid-19 Booster Vaccination Programme 2023-24
As autumn approaches in the coming months, now is the time to start thinking about getting the annual flu jab. This year, the free jab will be offered to more people amidst concerns around the still-present Covid-19.
The NHS flu programme in England typically offers the flu vaccine to those over the age of 65, pregnant women and those with existing health conditions or weakened immune systems. These groups will remain a high priority this year, while the programme will also be extended to reach out to more people.
In a typical winter, flu is one of the biggest health concerns for many older and vulnerable people. With the additional threat of coronavirus this year, the public are being advised to take extra care to avoid both diseases. The government hopes for as many people as possible to receive the flu jab to reduce the risk of caregivers and healthcare workers coming under immense pressure.
Flu and Covid-19 Booster Clinics 2023-24
We will be holding Flu and Covid-19 booster clinics over the next few months and if you are eligible to have it done this winter, we will send you an invitation with a self-book link to book your appointment. You can also check with our reception team if you are eligible patients this year by calling us on 0203 006 2741.
Please wear a face covering and respect social distancing rules. Please do not attend the clinic if you have any of the COVID-19 or Flu symptoms.
Our Flu and Covid-19 booster clinics will be run in both locations, main site and the new site at Mapleton Crescent so please check carefully when you check-in for your appointment.
The flu vaccine is given free on the NHS to people who:
- All children aged 2 to 3 years on 31 August 2023
- Those aged from 6 months to less than 65 years of age in a clinical risk group such as those with:
- Chronic (long-term) respiratory disease, such as asthma (requires continuous or repeated use of inhaled or systemic steroids or with previous exacerbations requiring hospital admission), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or bronchitis
- Chronic heart disease, such as heart failure
- Chronic kidney disease at stage 3, 4 or 5 o chronic liver disease
- Chronic neurological disease, such as Parkinson’s disease or motor neurone disease
- Learning disability
- Diabetes
- Splenic dysfunction or asplenia
- A weakened immune system due to disease (such as HIV/AIDS) or treatment (such as cancer treatment)
- Morbid obesity (defined as BMI of 40 and above)
- All pregnant women (including those women who become pregnant during the influenza season)
- Household contacts of immunocompromised individuals
- People living in long-stay residential care homes or other long-stay care facilities
- Those who are in receipt of a carer’s allowance, or who are the main carer of an older or disabled person
- Frontline health or social care workers
Flu vaccination is important because:
- More people are likely to get flu this winter as fewer people will have built up natural immunity to it
- If you get flu and COVID-19 at the same time, research shows you’re more likely to be seriously ill
- Getting vaccinated against flu and COVID-19 will provide protection for you and those around you for both these serious illnesses
- If you’ve had COVID-19, it’s safe to have the flu vaccine. It will still be effective at helping to prevent flu
The COVID-19 booster vaccine is given for free on the NHS to people who:
- aged 65 years and older, residents in care homes, those aged 5 years and over in a clinical risk group (we offer a Covid-19 booster to patients aged 18 and 64 years old at-risk group in the surgery)
As with a flu invitation, you will also receive an invitation for a Covid-19 booster with a self-book link to book your appointment. You can also book an appointment on the NHS website at www.nhs.uk/book-covid-booster or by phoning 119, or you can visit a walk-in vaccination site without an appointment – see www.nhs.uk/vaccine-walk-in.
External websites for further information: