Services we provide relating to Alcohol and Drugs.

Do I need help?

Take the alcohol test this is an excellent online tool which helps you work out if you’re at risk of alcohol-related problems and some simple things you can do to reduce the risk.

Alternatively, if you’d prefer a paper format:Alcohol brief intervention ()

Getting help

Forward Leeds

Forward Leeds has a wide range of services that support young people, adults and families in Leeds with alcohol and/or drug use.

It is the service that our Doctor’s will refer you to if you need help, you can also self-refer to the service.

Here is the list of Forward Leeds services

Or call them on 0113 8872477

Alcoholics Anonymous

Alcoholics Anonymous is a national network of free self-help groups aimed at helping people recover from alcoholism.

Some people find them very useful and our Doctors often recommend them.

The best way of finding out about them and your closest group is at Alcoholics Anonymous

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Health checks for people with a diagnosed problem

If you have one of the following conditions then you will be invited for an annual health check.

• Diabetes
• COPD
• Asthma
• Learning disabilities
• Dementia
• Severe mental health problems

We invite all patients for their annual health check using our Practice recall system. You may need a blood test before the appointment, in which case the invite will say this.

Additional support as you get older.

Clinical Care Coordinators

As you get older the range of problems you face can grow, to the point where it might be difficult to cope, know what to do for the best, or make it difficult for you to leave your house.

We have a small team of Clinical Care Coordinators who support older people with complex needs to help with some of the problems you can find yourself faced with.

They are able to help with:

• Mobility issues
• Memory problems
• Loneliness and isolation
• Housing issues
• Practical issues such as help dressing and cleaning
• Health issues

Their role is to help you understand the range of services available and support you in deciding the best course of action.

If you feel they could be of help then ask your Doctors to put you in touch.

District Nurses

District Nurses carry out many roles for housebound patients including:

• General nursing procedures and investigations
• Post-surgery care
• Assessment of patients’ needs
• Care for terminally ill patients
• Loaning of equipment
• Looking after wounds and leg ulcers
• Educating patients about self-care

Referrals can be made by a Doctor or Nurse at the Practice.

Community Matron

Liz Fletcher is our Community Matron.

Community matrons specialise in caring for older people, whether they live in their own home or a care home. They help patients manage their health problems and try to prevent unnecessary admissions to hospital.
If a patient has to be admitted, they will communicate with the hospital team to ensure a smooth a discharge as possible.

Dementia services

It is very important that anyone who has problems with their memory has an assessment. If these problems are due to dementia then early diagnosis and referral have many benefits for the patient, their carer(s) and family. It can help them to plan and access the treatment and support they need and to improve their quality of life.

Please book with one of Doctors who can make the initial assessment and refer you to the memory clinic if necessary.

Adult Social Care

Leeds city council help people aged over 18 to live as well as possible with their illness, disability or other problems.  This can include help with washing, dressing, eating, getting out and about and keeping in touch with family and friends.

Adults who may need extra care and support include:

• Older people
• People with learning disabilities
• People with physical disabilities
• People with mental health problems
• People with drug and/or alcohol issues
• Carers

They offer a wide range of support and help and their adults and health page is a good place to start.

Or call them 0113 222 4401 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm)

This can be done by you, a family member, a friend.

If you have difficulty using the telephone please email them at feedback@leeds.gov.uk.

AVSED

Aireborough Voluntary Services to the Elderly (AVSED) is a charity working across Aireborough (including Yeadon, Rawdon and Guiseley; LS19 and LS20 postcodes)

Their aim is to prevent social isolation of local older people and help them live happy, healthy and independent lives.

Midwife

Patients living in Guiseley

The midwife is available at the Practice on Wednesdays. You can book an appointment via the reception desk.

Patients living in Menston

Menston patients come under the care of the Ilkley midwives.  Their details can be obtained from Menston reception.

The role of the midwife

A midwife is a qualified nurse who has undertaken further training to provide and promote normal midwifery.

They help you to prepare for motherhood and promote good health for yourself and your baby by advising on the effects of drinking, smoking and good diet whilst you are pregnant.

The midwife guides you through your pregnancy and endeavours to detect any problems and make relevant referrals if necessary.

First appointment with the midwife

If you are pregnant you do not need to see the Doctor in order to have your first appointment with the midwife.

You can arrange your first appointment via the reception desk. This first appointment should be at about 9 weeks of pregnancy.
Due date calculator

The Midwife will discuss your options for delivery, arrange appropriate referrals and provide you with dietary advice.

She will also take blood tests and will subsequently discuss the results with you. Whilst you are pregnant and until your baby is one year old you are entitled to free prescriptions and dental treatment. The Midwife will organise for an exemption certificate to be signed and sent off.

During The Pregnancy

Your maternity book lists when you will be seen by the Midwife, Doctor and hospital through your pregnancy. Should you have any concerns at any other time you can contact your midwife or, if she is not available, make an appointment to see a Doctor during normal surgery hours.

At some point during the course of your pregnancy, the Health Visitor will meet you to talk to you about her role in your care and about the childhood vaccination programme.

After Your Birth

After delivery, your Midwife will visit you at home to help you and your baby. Following the birth, she will visit you on your first day at home. When your baby is five days old she will carry out the Guthrie test (which is a special screening test that the Midwife will give you information about) and at ten days old she will discharge you and your baby from her care. Extra visits may be arranged according to need.

Your Health Visitor will visit you at home when your baby is between 10 and 14 days old and can advise on feeding, weaning and any family issues you may have.

About 6 weeks after your birth you should make an appointment to see your Doctor to discuss contraception and any concerns you have about your own health.

Breastfeeding

It takes time for you and your baby to learn how to breastfeed.

The NHS Choices page on breast feeding might be useful.

Your midwife can also offer support and advice.

There are also a number of national services offering local support groups, which can be accessed via their websites:

• Babycafe
• Association of Breast Feeding Mothers
• La Leche League GB
• Breastfeeding Network

The term ‘social prescribing’ is used to describe a service which supports people to access a range of non-medical services and activities in their local area.

Social prescribing can help people with different social, emotional or practical needs to find the right support and improve their health and wellbeing.

The service can help you:

• Get support to improve your physical health.
• Find employment or volunteering opportunities or learn a new skill.
• Tackle money, housing, work or benefits issues.
• Cope with a particular condition or difficulty.
• Access ways of improving your emotional wellbeing such as befriending schemes, peer support or arts and leisure activities.

Our local service is run by Patient Empowerment Project (PEP).

To make an appointment please contact them on 0113 279 5870 or email pep@barca-leeds.org.

The Practice offers Travel advice and Travel vaccination appointments. This is a private service and fees apply.

Practice Requirements

In order to help us provide a high standard of travel health consultations, patients must complete a pre-travel questionnaire and return it to the Practice prior to booking your travel health appointment with the Practice Nurse.  This will ensure that your travel plans and vaccination history can be reviewed by the Nurse prior to your appointment, ensuring all issues can be discussed within the appointment time and that a second advice appointment is not required.

A copy of the Pre-Travel questionnaire is available to download below:

It is essential that all complex travellers obtain a travel health brief from one of the following information sources:

Travel Health Pro

www.masta.org

Please bring the information with you to your travel consultation with the Nurse.

When to book

It is recommended that your Travel Advice appointment is made at least 8 weeks prior to your departure. If your trip is of a complex nature i.e. visiting 2 or more countries or travelling for longer than 3 weeks, we recommend your appointment is made at least 8 to 12 weeks prior to departure.  This will ensure you have time to receive any vaccinations you may require.

The purpose of your initial consultation is to discuss your travel vaccination requirements. You will not routinely commence your vaccinations at this appointment and may require further appointments in order to complete vaccination schedules.

Payment

Some of your travel vaccinations may require payment. Please note if any payments are required for vaccines we can only accept cash and payments are to be made on the day you collect your prescription(s) for your vaccinations. It is your responsibility to bring any required private vaccines to your follow up vaccine appointment.

Travel Clinic Fees

Please note: All doses must be paid for on collection of your prescription.

Travel Consultation	Charge
Hepatitis B	£15.00 for each vaccine given (private prescription & administering)
Rabies
Japanese Encephalitis
Tick Bourne Encephalitis
Meningitis ACWY Vaccinations
Private prescription for Travel (including malaria tablets)	£15.00
Holiday Cancellation – Short Certificate	£25.00
Holiday Cancellation – Report	£50.00
Fitness to Travel – Report	£40.00 to £100 depending on form detail

Advocacy means helping another person to communicate their views and wishes.

GPs often act as advocates for patients when dealing with issues in the hospital or by making sure that their patients’ and/or families’ voices are heard when a decision is needed about their care.

Advocacy involves looking at choices together and helping patients to make decisions. It may be writing a letter of support or communicating on behalf of the patient.

When advocates who are not part of social services or the NHS are needed, they can be found in Leeds at:

• Advonet
• Articulate Advocacy CIC
• Leeds Independent Health Complaints Advocacy

Services available to help with bereavement.

Online

For general advice about bereavement you might find the NHS choices article on bereavement useful.

If you are looking for advice about dealing with the practical aspects (such as legal issues) of someone dying then try the Bereavement Advice Centre.

The Leeds Bereavement Forum collates allot of information on the services available in Leeds.

In person

There are also several organisations and charities that provide specialist advice and support to those that have been bereaved:

• Cruse (bereavement care in Leeds area)
• Sands (stillbirth and neonatal death charity)
• The Compassionate Friends
• Leeds Suicide Bereavement Service
• Child Bereavement UK
• Winston’s Wish (for bereaved children)

Information for carers and the help we provide.

Who is a carer?

Many carers are not known by their GP practice as there is often confusion around how to define the term ‘carer’.

A carer is a person of any age (including children) who provides unpaid support to a partner, relative, friend or neighbour who couldn’t get by 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.

It is estimated that 10% of patients are carers.

Improving carer identification

As a practice, we want to increase the number of people on our carers’ register so that we can look after you better. We do this by:

• Asking patients with long-term conditions to name their carers
• Running awareness-raising campaigns to get carers to tell us about their caring responsibilities

What we offer to improve healthcare for carers

• Flu vaccination – most carers are eligible for a free flu vaccination to protect themselves and the person they care for
• Regular health check appointments to help you keep fit and well
• Referrals to carers’ services for more specialised information, advice and support

Dedicated services for carers

If you care for someone and would like additional support then the following services may help

• Carers Leeds
• Carers Trust

Some things are not covered by the NHS.

Private Medical Services

You may have to pay a fee for certain services that are not covered by the NHS. These fees reflect the time it takes for the doctor to look at your medical records and admin time.

Services include things like private health certificates, insurance claim forms, HGV/taxi medicals and some travel vaccinations.

This is our current list of Non NHS fees.

More information about why we charge can be found on the BMA website.

Private Medical Forms

There are also times when we are asked for information about a patient’s health, such as when you are applying for a mortgage or life insurance. We only do this with your permission and you have the right to see the report before it is sent. To avoid any delays, please make sure you sign the consent form that the company gives you.