THE REGIS PATIENTS’ CHARTER

1. Patients will be treated as an individual, given courtesy and respect at all times, irrespective of ethnic origin, religious beliefs, personal attributes or the nature of their health problem.

2. Patients should expect to be involved in discussing what is happening to them and what the doctor is trying to do. Patients should expect to have illnesses properly treated and doctors will call in specialist help if need be.

3 Waiting time will be kept to a minimum and patients told of any expected delays to their booked appointment time.

4. Out of hours - a doctor is contactable in case of emergency. A patient or relative should not have to make more than two phone calls to get through to the doctor.

5. Patients may receive a copy of the practice booklet with any other information setting out the services provided. Patients should be able to consult any other Primary Health Care Team members about their health.

6. The premises will be clean, comfortable and accessible, including facilities for the disabled.

7. Patients will be offered a registration appointment on joining the doctors' list.

8. This is a non-smoking practice.

9. Patients may have access to their health records, subject to any limitations in the law, and know that those working in the surgery are under a legal duty to keep their contents confidential. We do not disclose any information regarding patients without their written consent.

However, whilst a number of people may have access to all or part of your records, be assured they are all bound by a confidentiality agreement. These include health visitors, district nurses and the Primary Care Trust.

10. Patients may choose whether or not to take part in medical research or medical student training.

11. Patients will receive a full and prompt reply to any complaints they make about practice services when submitted to the practice manager.

12. Confidentiality will be respected by all staff members.

13. There is a zero tolerance policy under the NHS of verbal or physical abuse of doctors and their staff. Any patient who abuses any member of the primary health care team either verbally or physically is likely to be removed from the list.

Help Us To Help You

1. If you have made an appointment please do your best to keep it or to cancel it in advance. Please remember that one appointment is for one patient only; it is to the benefit of all patients that an appointment system is used properly.

2. Please be ready to give us details of past illnesses, medication, immunisations and other relevant details. Always inform us of any change in address or telephone number.

3. Each person is responsible for their own health and should take appropriate action where necessary with advice on how to prevent ill-health (for example, by not smoking).

4. Let us know if you need more information about your care and treatment or if you are unhappy about any decisions made.

5. Repeat prescriptions take 48 hours to process. Make sure that you do not run out at the last minute.

6. A doctor has to see many patients every day and their time is limited. Please try not to delay a doctor unnecessarily as this leads to long waiting times for others.

7. A doctor can see many more patients in surgery than when out visiting. Please try your best to come to the surgery for the appointment when not prevented by severe illnesses or infirmity Requests for home visits should be made before 10.00am if possible.

8. Out of hours 6.30pm – 8.00am emergency medical problems are now the responsibility of the PCT and no longer handled by the practice. Please remember that this service is for medical emergencies only.

9. There are some patients who need long consultations because of the nature of their illness. A doctor does not know in advance who they might be. Patients in the waiting room should take this into consideration, because on another occasion that long consultation might be theirs.

10. As all members of the primary health care team are required to treat patients with courtesy and respect, so we also require patients to act in a similar manner with all members of the primary health care team.

Removal Of Patients From The Practice List

The practice is allowed to remove patients from its list, under certain circumstances. This is not something we undertake lightly and if this situation arises we will always inform you of the reason. We notify the health authority who will write to the patient to inform them of the date they will be removed from the list. Such patients are then provided with a list of doctors in the area and are encouraged to find a GP. If they cannot find one, the health authority will allocate them to a list, initially for a period of six months.

The health authority is working with PCTs to try and reduce removals from GP lists and hopefully this should only occur when the patient/primary health care team relationship has deteriorated beyond repair. Patients will also be asked to change their doctor if they move to an address outside the practice area.

Comments & Complaints

We run an in-house complaints system. If at any time you wish to make a comment or complaint concerning the standard of service you have received from anyone connected with the practice, we would ask that, in the first instance, you contact the practice manager. She will gladly supply you with the information you require in order to pursue your complaint.
On the other hand, if you have instances of good practice by the members of the team we would also like to know about these!

Chaperones

You are welcome to request a chaperone during all intimate examinations should you wish one.

Carers

A carer is anyone of any age who regularly helps another person with everyday tasks or provides emotional and/or social support. They can be parents, a relative, friend or neighbour. They may provide full or part time care or share such care with others.

We are currently compiling a register of carers and would ask that, if you are a carer, you inform reception who will give you a form to complete in order that we may add your name to our register. We need to identify all carers ie those who care for people whether they are patients of ours or not. The aim of the carers register is to ensure carers have easy access to information which will be of help and support to them.

Influenza Vaccine

Influenza vaccination is usually available for ‘at risk’ groups: those aged 65 and over and those suffering from chronic disease including heart, lung and diabetes. Please book for the influenza vaccination in September - normally immunisations commence early in October. Pneumococcal vaccination may also be given. This is to prevent pneumonia and is also available for ‘at risk’ people.

Medical Certification For Sickness Absence For Employers

Only after seven days’ absence is there a legal requirement for a medical certificate. Prior to that a self-certification form should be obtained from and returned to your employer. We do not routinely provide private medical certificates.

Mobile Phones

Please do not use mobile phones within the surgery, as their use is very distracting and may interfere with medical equipment.

REGIS patient group

The practice has an active Patient Participation Group which meets regularly . This is a forum where suggestions can be discussed. If you feel you would be interested in joining the group please liaise through the practice manager.

Diabetic Group

There is a monthly patient diabetic group meeting, usually held on Tuesday afternoons at Regis Medical Centre. For further information please contact the Diabetes Nurse at Regis Medical Centre.

Freedom of Information - Publication Scheme

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 obliges the practice to produce a Publication Scheme. A Publication Scheme is a guide to the ‘classes’ of information the practice intends to routinely make available. The scheme is available from the practice manager.

GP Registrars

We are privileged to be approved as a training practice for doctors who have had extensive hospital experience and have decided to make general practice their career. They will join our practice team for six to twelve months before entering full time general practice. The doctor undergoing training may be identified by a blue name label on his door.

Sometimes, for learning and assessment purposes, the registrars may wish to make video recordings of consultations. These are an essential part of their training and we hope you will feel comfortable in participating. However, if you do have concerns, please say so.

Medical Students

We also have medical and nursing students attached to the practice. If you wish to see your doctor alone, please tell the receptionist and this will be arranged.