GP

Extra access for patients to GP practices and pharmacies over Easter bank holiday weekend

Special arrangements are in place to make sure people in Devon can access GP and pharmacy services over the Easter weekend.

To respond to the current high demand from patients, GP practices across Devon, Torbay and Plymouth will be opening on Good Friday and Easter Monday as if they were normal working weekdays – from 8am to 6pm. Since the start of the outbreak, practices across the...

The pharmacist will see you now...

People in Devon are being urged to think “Pharmacy First” to fix their winter health problems.

Many people are unaware of the wide range of services available from their local pharmacist and they spend time waiting unnecessarily for a GP appointment or even in busy hospital Accident and Emergency departments, which are often under extreme pressure at this time of year.

Local...

Online GP consultations leap in first week

In their first week of full operation, around 1,000 online GP consultations were made to Beacon Medical Group, with 42% of all patient contacts in that first week made via online GP consultations.

Some 62.7% of patients who used an online GP consultation did not need an appointment, freeing up appointments for those who did. Anyone who used the online GP consultation service and who...

Initiative which halved GP wait times to be offered to 7,000 more Plympton patients

Beacon Medical Group is proud to be rolling out its No Waiting Room initiative to Glenside patients from October.

The No Waiting Room initiative will see an Urgent Care Team (UCT), comprising practice pharmacists, advanced paramedic practitioners, nurse practitioners and GPs providing patients with the right specialist, at the right time.

Patients registered at Glenside Medical...

Patient volunteers needed for GP exercise referral study

Local patient volunteers are being sought by researchers investigating whether or not adding web-based coaching to a GP exercise referral scheme (ERS) would lead to increased uptake and sustained health enhancing physical activity.

The study has been extended to February/March next year and researchers are looking for patients who can be referred by the GPs to the ERS at either the...

Report highlights people with MS in Devon not receiving fair care

New research from the MS Trust surveyed over 1,800 people living with MS. It found that too many people living with progressive forms of MS feel they are getting a second class service, and many feel abandoned by their specialists.

People with progressive MS make up almost half of the UK’s 100,000 MS population. But 40% of them haven’t seen an MS specialist nurse in the past year and...

GP group set to change the future of healthcare

A progressive GP group headquartered in Plymouth has expanded its presence across the region with a view to reinventing the traditional general practice structure, using funding from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking.

Crownhill Surgery in Plymouth is the latest surgery to be incorporated into the Pathfields Practice group, purchased with the support of a six-figure loan from the bank. The...

GPs under pressure from dental patients

GPs in the South West have said they are under extra pressure due to patients coming to them rather than dentists with concerns over oral health.

According to a poll conducted by ComRes, 82 per cent of GPs based in the South West believe that too many patients are turning to them for oral health advice instead of a dentist which is increasing pressure on general practices.

The...

Plymouth GP: “Have a cough or cold? Take care, not antibiotics”

A doctor from Plymouth has reminded people of the importance of using antibiotics wisely to help prevent the increase in antibiotic resistance.

Antibiotics Awareness Day takes place on 18 November and Dr David Gwynne, a GP from Plymouth and a clinical lead for medicines optimisation at Northern, Eastern and Western Devon Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), has backed a European...

Devon GP urges people to stay cool in hot weather as heatwave level is raised

A GP from Devon has urged people to stay cool in the hot weather and to look after elderly and vulnerable friends and neighbours as the Met Office today (Thursday 18 July) raised the heatwave level for Devon up to category three.

This means there is a 90 per cent probability of heatwave conditions between 0900 on Thursday and 2100 on Friday in Devon.

Recent high temperatures...

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