Patient Participation Group Newsletter – April 2023
Spring Covid Booster
The Blackmore Vale Partnership are not providing these vaccines this Spring, therefore please do not ring the Practice.
Read our Spring Covid Booster article
World Sleep Day
Last month saw World Sleep Day and the theme was “Sleep is Essential for Health”. Just like eating well and exercising, sleep is a behaviour that is foundational to one’s physical, mental, and social well-being.
However, sleep is not yet commonly considered an essential behaviour for good health. The Wellbeing team here at the Blackmore Vale Practice are here to help, and can advise you on good sleeping practice.
World Sleep Day is an annual event, intended to be a celebration of sleep and a call to action on important issues related to sleep, including medicine, education, social aspects and driving.
It is organized by the World Sleep Day Committee of World Sleep Society and aims to lessen the burden of sleep problems on society through better prevention and management of sleep disorders.
Routine sleep without interruption means lower rates of:
- Diabetes & Obesity
- Chronic Illness
- High Blood Pressure
You can contact the Wellbeing Team on 01747 856786.
Healthwatch Dorset – Urgent & Emergency Care across Dorset
Healthwatch Dorset will be visiting A&E and Minor Injury Units across Dorset in April to find out more about people’s experience of urgent and emergency care.
If you’ve recently used an urgent healthcare site please share your experience with us – good or bad they want to hear from you: Share your views
Make Time for Young Carers
We know that young carers can start feeling overwhelmed because of everything they need to do for their caring role on top of all their schoolwork and being a kid.
Often their mental and physical health is affected. That’s why it’s more important than ever to ensure that young Carers are registered with the surgery, so that they can make sure they are supporting them the best way possible, in what matters to them.
View a short video made by local young carers
Dorset Women’s Health – have your say
The Dorset Women’s Health Symposium is the beginning of a conversation about women’s health in Dorset in relation to the implementation of the Women’s Health Strategy for England which you can read here.
They want to hear your views and experiences to inform their work with commissioners and providers of women’s health services to make sure women in Dorset receive the best possible healthcare. Have your say: Women’s Health Questionnaire.
Cost of Living Help
Round 4 of the Household Support Fund is open soon for applications. Low-income households in the Dorset Council area will be able to apply for the next round of the Household Support Fund (HSF) to help with rising costs.
Unlike round 3, which saw two application windows, round 4 will be split into 6 different windows, spread over 6 months, allowing more residents to have a chance to apply. Dorset Council residents will be able to apply if they have:
- an annual household net income of less that £30,000 and
- savings of less than £16,000 and
- not applied for a previous HSF payment within the last 6 months
Please cancel unwanted GP appointments
The Practice Senior Partner and Deputy Chair of the Dorset General Practice Alliance Dr Simone Yule is thanking patients who take the time to communicate with the practice when they cannot attend appointments:
‘‘We want to thank the patients who let us know when they no longer need an appointment. This is a busy time for general practice, and these patients are freeing up vital clinician time that we can reallocate to other people who need it. We know that our phone lines can be busy, and we are starting to provide more online solutions for more effective and efficient communication.
This also has a positive impact for those who cannot access an online option by freeing up phone lines for those that need to use them. It’s never too late to tell us if you can’t attend an appointment.”
In Dorset last month, there were around 12,000 appointments in general practice where the patient did not attend an appointment. This is 3000 hours of valuable time with a health care professional that was not used.
“We recognise that people have commitments and situations can change” comments Dr Ben Sharland, GP partner in Bournemouth and Deputy Chair of Dorset General Practice. We want to understand the reason why people might be missing their appointments and how we can help with this.
We are concerned that people might be missing appointments and leaving themselves with medical problems that are not being diagnosed or treated in a timely way. We know that the sooner people seek help the better the outcomes.”
NHS Health Check
An NHS Health Check is a free check up on your cardiovascular health and can help you to prevent getting serious illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease or stroke. Residents aged 40-74 may be invited by their GP or pharmacy to get a Health Check from 1 April. If you do get invited, please book an appointment.
To find out more visit: NHS Health Checks.