The team at Ledbury Health Partnership offer a variety of different services to meet your healthcare needs. Whether this be an assessment in our rapid access clinic for an urgent problem, or a routine appointment with one of our nurses to help manage your long term condition.
We can help with everything from travel advice and vaccinations to advice about your medication from our practice based Pharmacist. To make sure you access the best type of service for your health needs please explore the various options available to you below.
This service is an efficient way of dealing with some minor ailments that do not necessarily need to be seen by a doctor, but also some potentially more serious symptoms, such as recent onset chest pain or shortness of breath. It can reduce the time you are waiting to be seen and allows the GPs to see patients with more complex needs. When you request an urgent on the day appointment the receptionist will ask you the nature of your problem. This is purely so they can direct you to the most appropriate healthcare professional to deal with your ailment. Rest assured our Practice Nurses and our Primary Care Practitioner are highly skilled and experienced professionals who, in the rare event they need help, will be able to speak directly to a GP for assistance
Ear infection
Chest Infection
Vomiting
Urinary Tract Infection
General services refers to routine appointments with a GP or Nurse, either to manage an ongoing problem, seek a referral or organise further investigations for your healthcare problem.
Ledbury Health Partnership GPs are available to you for help with your ongoing healthcare problems. GPs can refer you for further investigations, refer you to Secondary Care or can provide general advice and prescriptions, as appropriate, to help you manage your health.
If you are too ill to attend the surgery a doctor can see you at home. Please telephone the surgery on 01531 825925 before 11am if possible. The On Call Doctor may speak to you to plan the best way of dealing with the problem. Please remember that several patients can be seen in the practice in the time that it takes to make one home visit. There are also better facilities for examining and treating patients at the surgery.
Our team of Practice Nurses and Healthcare Assistants offer general services to our patients as listed below:
Blood Tests (at the request of a GP, or to monitor a chronic condition)
ECG's (at the request of a GP or consultant)
Blood Pressure Checks
Dressing changes and wound checks
Removal of stitches or clips
New Patient Medicals (offered to all new patients registering at the practice)
Pill Checks
Cervical Smear
Swab taking
Vaccinations and advice (for children, travel or seasonal vaccinations)
Injections (depo, zoladex or vitamin b12)
Well woman or well man check
If you feel that your problem can be dealt with over the telephone, the doctor will be happy to speak to you. Telephone the surgery and the receptionist will advise you when the doctor is likely to be available. If your problem is medically urgent, the receptionist will be able to contact the on call doctor for advice.
If the doctor feels it necessary they can arrange a video call with you to further discuss your medical problem.
Practice Pharmacists are highly qualified health professionals who specialise in medicines and how they work. The new role of a Practice Pharmacist for Ledbury Health Partnership will ensure that your medication needs and questions can be quickly and effectively sorted without waiting for a doctor. Our Medicines Management Team, lead by our Clinical Pharmacist, is the first point of contact for any medication queries or concerns you may have. Our Pharmacist can also offer telephone calls and face to face appointments. The Pharmacist can help when you need expert advice on your medicines after your condition has been diagnosed. However, the Pharmacist will not give you your medicines; you should collect these from the chemist in the usual way. To arrange a phone call or appointment with the Pharmacist please contact reception at the Surgery.
Does a new over the counter medicine go together with all my other medicines?
I am worried about side effects...
My usual medicine is currently unavailable...
How, when and for how long should I take my medicine?
Should I stop certain medicines before my operation/procedure?
I have missed or taken the wrong dose of my medicine, what should I do?
The GP team and the Nursing Team are able to offer specialised services in areas of interest they have trained further in. This allows us to offer to our patients expert advice across a number of different medical fields. This may mean that you are saved a referral to Secondary Care and that you are able to access more specialised care in the comfort of your own GP Surgery.
Dr Carpenter has a specific interest and further qualifications in dermatology, and will assess dermatological problems and advise on appropriate treatments.
Dr Wilkins holds minor surgery clinics at Ledbury Community Hospital once a month. She carries out procedures such as removal of in-growing toenails and skin tags. Please note the NHS does not allow us to remove skin lesions for purely cosmetic reasons.
Dr Flewers have a specific interest in women’s health and carry out IUCD fittings and implant fittings.
Our Diabetes Nurses offer twice yearly checks for all diabetic patients to ensure their condition is effectively managed and offer healthy lifestyle advice.
For those patients with a heart condition an annual review, including blood tests if required, to ensure their condition is being effectively managed both with medication and lifestyle changes (if appropriate).
Our Respiratory Nurses offer an annual check for patients with COPD to ensure their condition is well managed and their medications are working effectively. They can also offer Rescue Packs and Care Plans to help patients manage their condition through the difficult winter months.
Our Respiratory Nurses offer an annual check for patients with Asthma to ensure their condition is well managed and their medications are working effectively.
For those patients with Chronic Kidney Disease an annual review, including blood tests if required, to ensure their condition is being effectively managed both with medication and lifestyle changes (if appropriate).
If you have had a blood test at the Practice, or had further investigations such as an x-ray and have been advised the results will be sent to your GP Practice you can contact the Reception Team to receive these results. The practice has a strict policy regarding confidentiality and data protection. We will only release test results to the person to whom they relate unless that person has given prior permission for the release of this data or they are not capable of understanding the results. By registering for our online services you are able to view your laboratory test results at a time convenient to you.
Blood tests—please ring after 2:00pm 7 days after your blood was taken. Some tests and investigations may take longer. Results are received electronically and viewed by the doctor who will add a comment to your records. These comments can be relayed to you by a member of staff. If the doctor needs to discuss the results with you the receptionist will advise you of this. We deal with hundreds of results every day and to ensure that you need no further treatment we request that you always contact the Reception Team for your results.
Please do not assume that your results require no further action if you have not been contacted.
Blood Tests
X-Rays and Scans
Bone Densitometry
24hr Blood Pressure Monitoring
Our Nursing Team offer a number of different types of vaccinations, whether this is for travelling abroad on your holidays or part of the NHS vaccination schedule that starts with your childhood vaccinations and ends with vaccination against Seasonal Influenza, Pneumococcal and Shingles.
Many people choose to travel to exotic places, and the number of different adventure trips are also on the increase. Even if you are travelling to Europe it is advisable to check if you need vaccines and to seek advice that will help you to stay healthy on holiday. Ideally you should begin to organise your vaccinations at least 6 - 8 weeks before you leave the UK, particularly if you are travelling further afield. The last vaccination you receive should be at least 2 weeks before you travel.
If you need one of the vaccinations listed below please make an appointment with one of our Practice Nurses. Other travel vaccinations are not provided by the NHS and you will therefore need to find a private provider to give you these vaccinations. Regrettably, due to an increased demand on our services we are no longer able to provide a full travel vaccination service.
If you are up-to-date with your vaccinations you will not usually need a further injection of vaccine. However, if you are travelling to an area where there is little or no medical attention then it is always advisable to receive a further injection, particularly if it has been more than 10 years since your final booster.
Vaccinations are the most effective way to prevent infectious diseases. Children are offered a variety of vaccinations by the NHS from the age of 2 months. The Practice Nurses run a clinic for the immunisation of children from 2pm every Wednesday afternoon. Please telephone the practice to book an appointment and check for availability.
Children's vaccination scheduleFlu (also known as influenza) is a highly infectious illness caused by the flu virus. It spreads rapidly through small droplets coughed or sneezed into the air by an infected person. For most people, flu is unpleasant but not serious. You will usually recover within a week. Studies have shown that flu vaccines provide effective protection against the flu, although protection may not be complete and may vary between people. Protection from the vaccine gradually decreases and flu strains change over time. Therefore, new vaccines are made each year and people at risk of flu are encouraged to be vaccinated every year. The flu vaccination is offered to people in at-risk groups. These people are at greater risk of developing serious complications if they catch flu, such as those with a long term condition, pregnant women and elderly people.
MORE INFORMATIONTetanus is an infection that can be fatal in the worst cases which is caused by a bacterium that lives in soil and dirt. The bacterium may enter your body if you have a cut or wound in the skin. Children are routinely offered the tetanus vaccination as part of the immunisation schedule. For more details see the section above entitled 'Children's Vaccinations'. Immunisation against tetanus began in 1961, so there may be adults who have not had the full course of vaccinations so still remain at risk.
Primary Course - Three doses of vaccine, each a month apart.
4th Dose - 10 years after Primary Course
5th Dose - 10 years after 4th Dose
The Primary Course of injections offers good protection for a number of years. The 4th and 5th dose are boosters to maintain protection. After you have received the 5th dose immunity remains for life and you will not need any further tetanus vaccinations. Please note the course does not need to be restarted if you miss or delay an injection; a late injection, even years after it was due, is sufficient to catch up. It is common to get a some redness and swelling around the site of injection, but this should go within a few days. You should not receive the vaccine if you are unwell with a fever.
If you have not received any immunisations for tetanus, or you are not up-to-date with your boosters and you receive a cut or bite it is advisable to have an injection for tetanus. If you are up to date with your immunisations a further vaccination is NOT required.
Shingles, also known as herpes zoster, is a condition that is caused by reactivation of the chickenpox virus. Shingles tends to occur more often in older people and usually causes a painful rash on one side of the body. As older people are more likely to get shingles, the new national shingles immunisation programme for people aged 70 to 79 has been introduced by the Department of Health from September, to help protect those most at risk from shingles.
MORE INFORMATION If you match any of the criteria listed below you are eligible to receive a vaccination against Pneumonia at the Surgery free of charge:
Over 65
Suffer from a chronic condition such as: COPD, severe asthma, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, chronic liver disease, chronic heart disease
Immunosuppressed (undergoing chemotherapy, being treated with systemic steroids, HIV at all stages)
Asplenic or splenic dysfunction
Cochlear implants
Cerebrospinal fluid leaks
If you are asplenic or suffer from splenic dysfunction or chronic kidney disease it is recommended that you receive this vaccination every 5 years to ensure immunity is retained.
To be fully immunised against measles, mumps and rubella, you need to have 2 MMR vaccinations. These vaccinations are now part of children's immunisation schedule: the first at 12-13 months and the second at 3 years 4 months. If you are concerned that your child has not been fully immunised please contact the Surgery who will check the medical records and arrange any appointments with the Practice Nurses. The vaccine is also being offered to any adults who may not be fully immunised. The immunisation schedules have changed several times historically and due to this, depending on the year of you birth, there is a likelihood that you are not fully immunised:
By ensuring that you have had 2 doses of MMR vaccine in your lifetime you are protecting yourself against all 3 diseases. If you would like to know your immunisation status, or would like to book in to have the vaccination, please contact Reception who will arrange any necessary appointments and liaise with our Practice Nurses.
People born between 1970 and 1980 may only be vaccinated against measles and not mumps and rubella
People born between 1980 and 1990 may not be protected against mumps
People over the age of 45 are considered to have immunity; although you are still eligible to receive the vaccine if you should wish to.
The practice is able to offer the following private services to patients, however these services are not part of our NHS work and therefore fees apply. Please note we are unable to offer any concessions to charities or volunteers. Forms and reports will not be completed until after full payment is received. A 50% non-refundable deposit must be paid upon booking for medical examinations.
