Ling House Medical Centre would like to thank all of our patients for bearing with us during such unprecedented times. We have been humbled by your level of support, whilst we try to provide you with the best care possible given the circumstances.

As many of you have no doubt noticed getting through to the surgery has become increasingly difficult over the past few months. This is despite the surgery increasing the number of telephone lines coming into the surgery, as well as having 10 receptionists present on any given day. The current demand for appointments is exceeding pre-pandemic levels.

We believe there are a few reasons for this, which we would like to share with you:

Total Triage and Social Distancing Guidelines

Despite some lockdown restrictions being lifted, GPs are still being advised to run a telephone triage service and reduce footfall by restricting the number of patients coming to the surgery. This is to reduce the risk of onward transmission to both patients and staff. Patients, who would have previously walked into the surgery for queries aren’t able to do so, and as a result are having to ring the surgery, which is increasing our demand. COVID-19 has NOT gone away and we encourage our patients to continue to adhere to social distancing guidelines.

Patient Demand

As lockdown has eased, children have gone back to school and more social interactions have ensued at work and in the community. This has meant that we have seen a huge increase in presentations of snotty kids, coughs and colds, and viral illnesses. Our E-Consult numbers have also increased dramatically which is all impacting on our ability to provide prompt timely care. The vast majority of these illnesses are self-limiting and we would like to remind our patients that they should self-care by utilising the local pharmacy and the online 111 service.  The first point of call for minor illnesses does not have to be the GP.

COVID-19 Vaccination Programme

Alongside day to day General Practice work, we are heavily involved in the COVID vaccination programme. This means that practice staff are booking appointments for COVID jabs as well as manning the Vaccination Hub in Skipton. This is having an impact on the availability of staff, and therefore appointments. Given the importance of the vaccination programme to ensure that the lockdown is lifted, please bear with us whilst we ensure that all our patients have had the opportunity to be vaccinated.

Final Words…

We hope you appreciate the demands which we as a practice are under, and we are grateful for your patience and support. As things improve in the medium term, we hope that these issues will dissipate, and patient demand and access will improve. We only ask that you bear with us, and treat our staff (particularly receptionists) with kindness and respect, as you would like to be treated yourself.

CORONAVIRUS VACCINATIONS

Please click here for information on the Coronavirus vaccination programme and how to access your COVID-19 Vaccination status for travel purposes (COVID Passports).

Click on the videos below for Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) around the vaccination programme. The first video is of Dr Rubani, which is in English, and the second, by Dr Almas is in Urdu.

The information in the videos was correct at the time of recording (26th March 2021).

For information about the AstraZeneca vaccine and the risk of blood clots please click here.

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Please DO NOT book a GP appointment or come into the GP practice, pharmacy or hospital if you have symptoms of coronavirus.

You are advised to stay at home for 14 days if you or a member of your household has either:

•     A fever/high temperature
•     A new continuous cough
•     Loss of taste or smell

You do not need to contact 111 to tell them you are staying at home.

Use the NHS 111 online coronavirus service at www.111.nhs.uk/covid-19 if:

•     You feel you cannot cope with your symptoms at home
•     Your condition gets worse
•     Your symptoms do not get better after 7 days.

Only call NHS 111 if you cannot get the help you need online.

Please click on the following link for advice for carers looking after an unwell child: 

Up to date information about coronavirus is available online at:

www.nhs.uk/coronavirus

IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ

Entrance to Ling House Medical Centre is currently restricted for the safety of patients and staff. 

For Appointments

Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic the NHS has asked GPs to run a TOTAL TRIAGE appointment system until further notice. This is important to reduce avoidable footfall in the practices and protect patients and staff from the risks of infection.

All patients requesting an appointment will be managed remotely (online, phone, video). Patients will be seen face to face only in exceptional circumstances. Any patients visiting the surgery must wear a face covering to protect patients and staff.

Please ring the surgery at 8.30am to arrange an appointment. You can also submit an e-Consult. Should you wish to arrange a telephone appointment please click on the 'Book an Appointment' tab at the top of our website to see availability. Alternatively you can call reception who can book a telephone appointment for you or signpost you to the most appropriate service.     

Medication

If you are on regular medication, now would be the time to commence online ordering and nominate a local pharmacy to receive your prescription.  Please telephone reception and they will activate this facility for you.  Alternatively you can hand deliver your prescription request by placing it in the post-box at the front door of the practice or send it through the post to us.

Due to the current increase in demand, please allow four working days for prescription requests to be processed. Thank you.