Patient Newsletter for September 2023
Non-urgent advice: Everybody is kung-flu-fightin’
It’s flu jab season; we swear it comes around quicker every year! We start our clinics on 18th September and have contacted those who are eligible.
Not sure if you’re eligible? Check here.
We’re very keen to see all our patients who are 65 or will turn 65 by 31st March 2024 for their flu jab. Remember flu vaccinations offer not just protection for you but for your loved ones around you.
Be more Blondie
Nobody likes hanging on the telephone, least of all Blondie, but we’ve had a few patients mention it’s been difficult to get through to us by phone recently at peak times.
If you’re reading this newsletter, chances are you’re reading it online which means you can bypass the wait and use our online form instead. You can use it throughout the day, whenever we’re open so no need to join the 8am rush anymore!
Did you have an appointment with us in August?
We owe you a big thank you if you did because you booked and kept your appointment. But we also need to say a big thank you to those who no longer needed their appointment and cancelled it in good time. Thanks to you, we could offer your appointments to others who needed them.
We could have offered 178 more appointments in August, but we couldn’t because these were appointments booked by patients who no longer needed them and didn’t let us know.
Please help us to help you by cancelling any appointments you no longer need.
Read our Did Not Attend policy to find out how we are tackling missed appointments.
Still time to join this month’s Patient Group session
Grab a cuppa and cake with patients from other local GP practices in Putney and Roehampton to discuss new ideas and ways that practices like ours can help patients like you more.
The next patient group meets on 19 September. Send a quick email to [email protected] and we’ll give you the details. Everybody’s welcome!
Tell us what’s missing
Some of you may remember taking part in our January Patient Survey. We do these twice a year to hear what we’re getting right and what we could improve on. Our next one is due in October so we’d love to hear from as many of you as possible again.
Remember Tudor Lodge is your surgery! Have your say in how we run things.
Manage your organ donation decision
Did you know you can use the NHS App or website to manage your organ donation decision? It takes seconds to do and keeping your registration up to date will help your family, should organ donation be possible.
Staff Holidays
Just a heads up on who’s away this month if you need an appointment with one of them:
Nurse Rowena is away from 11 to 15 September
Dr Vala is away from 20 to 29 September
Welcome back to work, Dr Abi!
Non-urgent advice: Questions about the MMR vaccine?
For any parents with questions about the MMR vaccination, local healthcare professionals are holding an online session on Wednesday 13 September from 6pm.
To join, book a place here.
Know your numbers
When was the last time you checked your blood pressure? It was Know Your Numbers Week last week but we’re still reminding everyone about the benefits of regular blood pressure testing on your health.
You don’t need to book an appointment at the surgery to check your blood pressure either. If you’re over 40, pop along to your local pharmacy where you can have it checked for free and if there’s any issues, they’ll refer you to us.
Five minutes could be life-changing. Know your numbers.
Have we got your number?
We’re doing a big push this month on checking we’ve got everyone’s up-to-date contact details. Can’t stress enough how important it is we have your most up to date mobile number and email address. You can update us quickly by sending us a quick message online.
(By the way, you can save time getting to our online form by downloading the Tudor Lodge App!)
World Suicide Prevention Day – 10 September
Talking saves lives. Just the right words as always from @allontheboard #worldsuicidepreventionday
We hope you find this month’s newsletter useful. Have a happy and healthy September!
Crystal and the Tudor Lodge Health Centre Team!
