Welcome

Welcome to our website which we hope will provide you with information on the services available at our Mendlesham and Bacton surgeries.  Use the tabs above and at the bottom of the page to find out the information you need such as, when we are open, how to reach medical services when we are closed, the area we cover and learn more about the team at the Practice.

Noticed an unusual change to your body?  Don't sit it out, get it checked out:

Normal For You Be Clear on Cancer 

BUILDING UPDATE

DISRUPTION TO MENDLESHAM WORKING PRACTICES

DUE TO THE BUILDING WORKS TAKING PLACE AT MENDLESHAM SURGERY, WHICH INCLUDE A NEW DISPENSARY AND RECEPTION AREA, WE ARE TEMPORARILY HAVING TO ALTER OUR WORKING PRACTICES TO FACILITATE THE BUILDING WORK TO PROGRESS.

HAVING LOOKED AT VARIOUS OPTIONS IT HAS BEEN DECIDED THE FOLLOWING CHANGES ARE NECESSARY TO KEEP OUR PATIENTS AND STAFF SAFE DURING THIS DISRUPTIVE PERIOD.

FROM MONDAY 26^TH JULY:

• MEDICATION COLLECTION FROM MENDLESHAM SURGERY WILL BE RELOCATED AND PATIENTS WILL BE DIRECTED TO THE NEW COLLECTION POINT ON ARRIVAL AT MENDLESHAM
• NO ACUTE (ON THE DAY) PRESCRIPTIONS WILL BE DISPENSED AT MENDLESHAM. PATIENTS WILL BE ABLE TO COLLECT THEIR PRESCRIPTION FROM BACTON SURGERY
• ALL NURSE APPOINTMENTS WILL BE CARRIED OUT AT BACTON SURGERY

WE FULLY APPRECIATE THAT THE ABOVE TEMPORARY DISRUPTION TO OUR WORKING PRACTICES HERE AT MENDLESHAM WILL CAUSE PATIENTS INCONVENIENCE.  OUR CONTINUITY PLAN HAS BEEN CREATED AND AGREED WITH PATIENT SAFETY, SERVICE PROVISION AND LEAST INCONVENIENCE AS PRIORITIES.  WE ASK FOR YOUR PATIENCE DURING THIS PERIOD AS WE IMPROVE FACILITIES HERE AT MENDLESHAM. 

WE WILL NEED TO MINIMISE PATIENTS ATTENDING MENDLESHAM SURGERY UNNECESSARILY AND WOULD LIKE TO REMIND PATIENTS TO WAIT FOR THEIR TEXT MESSAGE OR 5 WORKING DAYS BEFORE ARRIVING TO COLLECT THEIR PRESCRIPTIONS.  IF YOU HAVE NOT RECEIVED YOUR TEXT MESSAGE AND YOU PRESENT AT MENDLESHAM TO COLLECT YOUR PRESCRIPTION, OUR DISPENSERS WILL NOT BE ABLE TO COMPLETE THIS FOR YOU AND YOU WILL BE ASKED TO RETURN AT ANOTHER TIME. 

THE BACK ENTRANCE TO THE SURGERY REMAINS CLOSED AND LOCKED FOR HEALTH & SAFETY REASONS.

Please click on this link if you would like to view the extension plans. 

 WE ARE REALLY SORRY FOR THE UNAVOIDABLE INCONVENIENCE THIS WILL CAUSE AND ASK FOR YOUR PATIENCE DURING THIS TIME.

Patient and visitors to GP practices across Suffolk and north east Essex are being reminded that they must continue to wear face coverings and observe social distancing rules from 19th July when lockdown rules ease.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING AND SUPPORT

FLU CLINICS 2021 

15th September 2021 -  Next flu clinic is on 25th September at Bacton Surgery. Limited appointments available for those who have received an invite.

Invites are being sent via text message and letter for those whom have no mobile. Please waiting for your invite before calling to book. Thank you. 

We will keep the website up-to-date with further information.  We apologise for the inconvenience.

Who can have the flu vaccine?

Those eligible for NHS influenza vaccination in 2021 to 2022 are:

• all children aged 2 to 15 (but not 16 years or older) on 31 August 2021
• those aged 6 months to under 50 years in clinical risk groups
• pregnant women
• those aged 50 years and over
• those in long-stay residential care homes
• carers
• close contacts of immunocompromised individuals
• frontline health and social care staff

Covid-19 Update - 19.07.21

With the recent substantial increase in infection rates, we ask that patients continue to please contact us by phone or online (using eConsult) as you have been doing.  We are facing unprecedented demands for our services and continue to adjust how we use our clinician's time to best support all our patients.  

Appointments

All GP and Nurse Practitioner appointments are provided by telephone initially. 

To book a 'telephone consultation' either phone reception on 01449 767722 or book online.  Your call will be dealt with by a care navigator and then triaged by a clinician.  Please note that your call may be an hour either side of the appointment time.

If the clinician feels that a physical examination or procedure is required, a face-to-face appointment will be arranged.  We see many patients face-to-face each day following clinical triage by a GP or nurse practitioner.  Video consultations are also available.  

For anyone attending an appointment, when you arrive at the surgery please remain in your vehicle and telephone reception who will advise you further.

Staff will continue to wear PPE and patients will be asked to wear a face covering when entering the surgery.  Appointment contact time will be kept to a minimum for everyone's safety but despite this each appointment needs to be longer to allow for staff to change their PPE and for extra cleaning between patients.  Access to and flow through the Practice will continue to be controlled. 

Prescriptions

Social distancing requirements are still in place across the NHS and we therefore need to continue with the process of only one person entering the building when collecting medication.  

Please continue to use our online service, post or hand in your slip to order your repeat prescription.  Turnaround time remains at 5 working days and please wait for your text message before calling or collecting your prescription.  

For dispensary queries please call either :  Mendlesham Surgery on 01449 767038 or Bacton Surgery on 01449 781857.

For additional Covid-19 information select 'Covid-19 Info' tab at top of page or click here

Advice For Parents During Covid-19

If your child is unwell please click here for advice.

Ear Syringing

Due to Covid-19 we are currently unable to provide ear irrigation as it is an unsafe procedure in these circumstances.

Please apply oil to the effected ear for 7-10 days.  If the problem does not resolve then a procedure called ear microsuction can be performed as a private procedure.  This is a safe procedure and may cost around £80.00.  Contact the Hearing Care Centre on: 0800 096 2637 for further information.

Retirement - Jan Kelly

It is with great sadness that we will soon be saying goodbye to Jan Kelly, our long-serving Nurse Practitioner.  Jan has worked at Mendlesham Medical Group since 2004 having worked for the NHS since she was 18 years old.

Jan will be retiring at the end of the year but from September will only be working on a Friday each week.  We know patients will want to pass on their best wishes.  Cards can obviously be sent or alternatively please email your message to: iesccg.mendlesham@nhs.net and we will ensure your message is pasted into Jan’s retirement book.

New Parkinson's Helpline

From 1st July 2021 a Suffolk wide a Parkinson's Helpline will offer a single point of contact for information and support, no matter what stage of the illness someone is at when they need help or information.  The helpline will support each person as an individual and aims to enable and empower people to make their own choices and feel in control of their lives.  The helpline operators will be on hand to answer questions and provide information tailored to the caller’s needs. If appropriate they will also be able to signpost to other local services and sources of help, such as support groups, or refer someone to an organisation that can help.

The helpline number is 08081 642028 and will operate from 9am to 5pm Monday-Friday and 10am to 4pm Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays.

Usual (named) GP

All regular patients at Mendlesham Medical Group are allocated a 'Usual GP' on registration.  You may notice a recent change to your 'Usual GP' and this has occurred during some necessary 'housekeeping' to our clinical system.  Please be reassured that you can continue to consult the clinician of your choice.  

If you have a preference as to which GP you would prefer, the practice will make reasonable efforts to accommodate this request.  However, this may not always be possible and we may have to assign a different GP.

GP & NURSE EDUCATION DAYS

Ipswich & East Suffolk Clinical Commissioning Group organise monthly 'virtual' training events for practices across Suffolk.  We will be closed for clinics from 1.00 pm on the following days so our doctors and nurses can attend these events:

2021 DATES:  Wednesday, 10th February, Wednesday, 10th March, Thursday, 22nd April, Wednesday, 19th May, Thursday, 17th June, Wednesday, 14th July, Thursday, 12th August, Thursday, 9th September, Wednesday, 13th October, Thursday, 11th November & Wednesday, 8th December

The telephones will be diverted to the Out of Hours provider, who will be covering any clinical emergencies.

Please dial 111 if you need medical assistance.  If your problem is life threatening dial 999. 

The Dispensary at Mendlesham will continue to be open from 3.00 pm for medication collection.

Extended Hours

The GP Extended Hours service is designed to provide patients with appointments outside core general practice hours for routine care and is available:

Tuesday 7.00-8.00 am and Thursday 7.30-8.00 am and 6.30-7.00 pm offering a selection of blood test, GP and Nurse Practitioner appointments

To book an appointment please call reception.

GP Online Services

You can register to book your appointments, request medication and access your medical records online. For more information see our Online Services page.

Mobile Phone Contact Details

Please ensure that the mobile phone number you have supplied us with is up-to-date and and that you have consented to receive text messages. 

Collecting Prescriptions/Medication

Please note if you need someone else to collect medication on your behalf, you will need to sign and return the below form before your medication can be collected by the third party. 

GDPR representative consent letter

AccuRx - Asthma Questionnaires

In addition to our text appointment reminder service, we have started using AccuRx which is a piece of software we will use to enhance our communications with you whilst we reduce the footfall in to the practice.  This is used via the practice’s clinical system to your mobile phone using a text message conversation or video consultation. This enables you to converse with a member of the clinical team and for clinical information be saved to your medical record. 

We are currently using the AccuRx text messaging facility to send Asthma Questionnaires to patients in their birth month.

Medical Students

Over the year we will be hosting medical students at Mendlesham. They will often sit in with the GPs and sometimes will see patients themselves, under close supervision of one of the Doctors and with the consent of the patient.   We would like to thank you all for making the students feel so welcome during their time here.

Healthwatch Suffolk

You are able to leave feedback by using the link below:

https://www.healthwatchsuffolk.co.uk/services/mendlesham-medical-group-stowmarket-1

Friends of Mendlesham Health Centre - Join In

We are extremely lucky to have a very active Friends group who do a lot of fundraising for the practice. Their support has enabled us to purchase diagnostic equipment for use in the surgery.  For further information about the 'Friends' please see "News" tab at the top of this page.

When We Are Closed

The NHS 111 service is available for patients to call when the surgery is closed.  Trained clinicians are on hand to answer health related queries, provide general advice or arrange for a doctor or nurse to discuss your more specific need.  NHS 111 is for when your need is less urgent that 999.

CQC Inspecton

The practice was routinely inspected in January 2020 and the inspection report can be accessed via the link below.

Named Accountable GP

All patients at the practice have a named accountable GP on their clinical record.  Your named GP has overall responsibility for your care but you may see any GP of your choosing at the surgery. If you wish to find out who your named GP is, please ask at reception.

Friends and Family Test

The Friends and Family Test is an opportunity for our patients to provide feedback on the services we provide, to complete the online questionnaire please look on the "Have your say" tab at the top of this page.

GP Patient Survey

For the full survey results please visit the GP Patient Survey website GP Patient Survey Results 2017 GP Patient Survey Website

My Care Record

Please see 'My Care Record' in Further Information section at bottom of page.