Southmead Surgery
The new RSV ‘winter virus’ vaccine will be offered for eligible patients from mid-September 2024.
Our first clinic for patients aged 75-79 years will be held on Monday 16th September.  You can receive this vaccine up until the day you turn 80. Please call reception to book your appointment. Older adults are more at risk of serious complication from RSV. Please see NHS leaflet for more information https://www.nhs.uk/vaccinations/rsv-vaccine/
Please note, the RSV vaccine cannot be given at the same time as influenza ‘flu’. The influenza vaccine will be available after 3rd October. We encourage patients to wait until offered by the practice as it has been shown to be more effective if given from mid-Autumn; protecting you during the peak winter months. Covid boosters will be available at the same time as flu for patients in eligible groups. https://ukhsa.blog.gov.uk/2024/08/02/whos-eligible-for-the-2024-covid-19-vaccine-or-autumn-booster/
Walk in clinics will be announced soon.

Vulnerable people

In certain circumstances some patient groups can be more vulnerable. For these patients groups there are additional local and national services which can make a real difference. In the sections below we provide links to general information and to local and national services. We also describe how our practice can help you.

“In 2017, there were an estimated 2.4 million UK Armed Forces Veterans in Great Britain, making up an estimated 5% of household residents aged 16 and over.”
“Annual Population Survey: UK Armed Forces Veterans residing in Great Britain, 2017”. Gov UK website Retrieved 14 February 2023.

Veterans

We know the healthcare needs of veterans can be different from other patients as they transition from the support and friendship of the military to life outside. We also know that veterans have higher levels of post-traumatic stress disorder, and that common conditions including anxiety and depression and problems relating to alcohol occur in veterans.

Service families

We know about the extra pressure on family life that comes with deployment and periods of separation, social isolation and regular changes of location.

Our support and please tell use if you are a veteran

We fully believe in the armed forces covenant and want to ensure that we deliver on it. We have brought together local and national information for veterans and the armed forces please see under

Please can you tell us that you are a veteran if you have not done so already, either by filling in the form under

or informing one of our receptionists and we will add a code to your notes (on the GP computer system) to show that you are a military veteran.

“Across the UK today 6.5 million people are carers (including young carers under the age of 17), supporting a loved one who is older, disabled or seriously ill.”
“Why we are here” Carers UK website. Retrieved 14 February 2023.

Who are carers?

A carer is a person of any age (including children) who provides unpaid support (excluding statutory allowances such as Carer’s Allowance) to a partner, relative, friend or neighbour who couldn’t cope without their help. This could be due to old age, frailty, disability, a serious health condition, mental ill health or substance misuse. Parents of children who are disabled or who have a serious health condition are also considered to be carers.

We know the valuable and essential contribution carers make to the health and care system but with this care giving we also know how this can impact on the health and wellbeing of carers. Carers can feel unsupported and isolated when it can be unclear about where to go for information or support. Young carers may experience educational difficulties with enforced absence and lateness due to their caring role.

Our support and please tell us if you are a carer

We know the significant contribution to the health and care system carers make but also value the care given to our individual patients who require care. We want to support carers both in their caring role and in maintaining their own health. We have brought together local and national information for carers please see under

Please can you tell us that you are a carer if you have not done so already either by filling in the form under

or informing one of our receptionists and we will add a code to your notes (on the GP computer system) to show that you are a Carer.

Proxy access

On occasions proxy access allows carers to access health services on behalf of dependants they care for. This is explained in more detail under

“There are currently around 900,000 people with dementia in the UK. This is projected to reach 1.6 million people in the UK living with dementia in 2040.”
“How many people have dementia and what is the cost of dementia care?”  Alzheimer’s Society website. Retrieved 14 February 2023.

Care for patients with dementia

There are a number of elements of care for dementia which have been shown to be important which are listed below.

  • early diagnosis
  • care planning and
  • living well for longer
  • Care for patients with dementia
  • Combining the support from many providers including health and social care providers but also the voluntary sector.
  • Identifying and supporting carers

We explain care planning below and cover the other areas in the links to other pages on this website below.

Care planning for people living with dementia

All patients with dementia in the practice are systematically followed up including reviewing

  • Medicines management
  • Talking therapies to help mood and behaviour
  • Alternative therapies to support sleep and agitation.
  • Support for carers not just for the carer’s role but also the carer’s own health and wellbeing.

Our support

We have brought together local and national information for patients with dementia and their carers. This includes information on

There is also information on wellbeing which can further support both patients with dementia and also their carers.

We also have separate pages on

“There are 1.5 million people with a learning disability in the UK.”
“How common is learning disability?” Mencap website. Retrieved 14 February 2023.

Potential health issues associated with a learning disability

We know people with a learning disability face many health inequalities which impact on life expectancy. Coronary heart disease and respiratory disease are leading causes of death. We know people with learning disability are less likely to take up preventive care, healthcare reviews, national screening and vaccination. People with a learning disability and asthma can be twice as likely to be smokers. We know that people with learning disability are less likely to have help for obesity, including screening for thyroid disease and diabetes.

Our support

We want to reduce these health inequalities for people with learning disabilities. We have brought together local and national information for people with a learning disability and any carers under

Annual health check

We offer a specific learning disability related annual health check (AHC) for anyone aged over 14. If you have a learning disability and you or your carer know you have not been offered an annual health check this may be because we have not properly flagged this on our computer system, so please tell us. We need to accurately identify patients with a learning disability and add a code to your notes (on the GP computer system). The Annual Health Check includes a health action plan to address health issues identified in this check and a medicines review.

Flu

Everyone with a learning disability is entitled to a free flu vaccination and we offer this.

Easy read information

Easy Read is a way of making written information easier to understand. This is a good source of some helpful easy read leaflets on common health conditions and services, see under

Accessibility

Finally, to support people with learning disability we follow the NHS Accessible Information Standard please see our

We have made adjustments to ensure we fully support disability access. Please see our statement on

“In December 2019 Shelter estimated that 280,000 people were homeless in England.”
“How many people are homeless?” Homeless Link website. Retrieved 14 February 2023.

Potential health issues associated with homelessness

Homeless people face several health inequalities.  We know there is a high prevalence of mental health problems and a greater incidence of long-term physical health conditions.

Our support

We want to reduce these health inequalities for people who are homeless. We have brought together local and national information for people who are homeless under

  • Homelessness – this includes emergency support from the local council if you have been made homeless.

In addition, there is excellent local support for

We know we need to make it easier for a homeless person to register with our practice. Homeless patients are entitled to register with a GP using a temporary address. This may be a friend’s address or a day centre. They can also use the practice address to register. There is more information from NHS England on registering with GP practice, see under

Please can you give us an alternative contact method if you do not have a mobile in case, we need to contact you for example with test results.

People who are from the gypsy, roma and traveller communities face several health inequalities.

Potential health issues for gypsies and travellers

As Gypsy-Traveller suggest “The health status of Gypsies and Travellers is much poorer than that of the general population, even when controlling for confounding factors such as variable socio-economic status and/or ethnicity. Poor access to, and uptake of, health services is a major factor in Gypsy and Traveller health.”
Zoe Matthews (November 2008) “The health of Gypsies and Travellers in the UK” Gypsy-traveller website. Retrieved 1 February 2022.

Our support

We want to reduce these health inequalities for people who are from the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities. We have brought together local and national information under

The leaflet from NHS England explains how to register with a GP.

Potential health issues for migrants

Asylum seekers, refugees and migrants face many of the same health problems as the UK population.  However, understandably many do not understand how to access treatment on the NHS and may suffer health impacts (mental and physical) after leaving their country.

Our support

We want to ensure that people who are asylum seekers, refugees and migrants are able to access NHS treatment. We have brought together local and national information under

The leaflet from NHS England  explains how to register with a GP

There are some people who are at greater risk of abuse or neglect. We explain in the links below who is at greater risk and how you can report a concern about a child or adult.

Adults safeguarding

Support for safeguarding of adults (stopping both the risks and experience of abuse or neglect) can be found under

Children safeguarding

Support for safeguarding of children (stopping both the risks and experience of abuse or neglect) can be found under

If there is immediate risk of harm to a child or adult, call the Police on 999.

Support following crime

The impact of crime can be profound. There is very good local support for the victims of crime including domestic abuse. There is also support which can help people move away from crime and support for their families. This can all be found under

Our practice understands the impact of crime and we support the continuing improvement in local services to reduce this impact.

Dementia friendly practice

As a practice we have taken some further steps to make us a

Dementia friendly practice

We are a Dementia friendly practice. This is explained in the frequently asked questions under

Quality care check lists and local support

The learning disability checklist can help you better understand some of the opportunities and local services available to help you. Some of these options you can access directly without needing to go through your GP practice and it can also support some of the options you have in the practice. The checklist is not submitted to the practice.

The checklist can be found under:

Some other checklists

For a further explanation of checklists and some other checklists which may be helpful to patients who potentially can be more vulnerable see under

Direct help

Self-referral

Self-referral involves accessing NHS health services and other support yourself without needing an appointment with your GP. This is explained further by patient info Self-referral | Patient.

Most of the local self-referral routes are covered under

Common self-referral pathways

For some of the more commonly used local self-referral pathways see “outside practice self referrals” under

Some local community self-referrals

There may be services in the local community close to the practice, which if available can be found under

Support for common conditions

Many common conditions have a support group which can be found if you look under the various conditions on

Support for your medication and many common conditions

Your local pharmacist can offer great support, see under

Signposting help

The NHS can be a complex maze particularly when it comes to local services. You can use the information on this website to help you find local services. You can also use the support of

  • Most vulnerable groups have a local service (referred to in the information on each group if available) which supports them locally and that is probably the best place to start with.
  • A social prescriber who will have knowledge of local services including for loneliness, unemployment, debt, and insecure housing. If available, you can find in the “in practice self-referrals” section under Contact Details And Self-Referral.
  • PALs for signposting with hospital services and Health watch signposting with community services Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) and other support

Practice Services

Videos and podcasts

On the videos and podcasts page there are links to some relevant videos and podcasts covering various topics relating to vulnerable people.

Friends and family test

We welcome feedback on your experience, including good experiences and where we can improve. This can be done easily. Following your appointment you will receive a text asking for your comments. We also have cards in our reception area for your to complete if you would rather.

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