Clinics & Services

We provide a comprehensive range of services to our patients in a friendly and efficient setting.  These include:

• Advanced Nurse Practitioners: Anna Neary and Carolyn Steele can see patients with new problems and are able to diagnose, prescribe and refer. Please note that they cannot provide sick notes or see babies under the age of 6 weeks old.
  

• Asthma Clinics: Patients will receive a letter inviting them to make an appointment with a Practice Nurse. This can be arranged by phoning or coming in to reception. These appointments last 15 minutes.

• Blood clinics: Patients can only book a blood test if it has been requested by a GP, a hospital or if it is one that is done on a regular basis.

• Blood Pressure Checks: We have a self-measurement machine in the waiting room and offer drop-in clinics every Thursday from 2-4pm at Portishead Medical Group.

• Cervical Screening: Patients will receive a letter inviting them to make an appointment. For women between the ages of 25-49 screening is undertaken every 3 years and between 50-65 it is every 5 years. Postnatal cervical screening can only be undertaken 3 months post-delivery.

• Child Health Surveillance: Health Visitor-led baby weigh-in clinics take place every Wednesday from 1-3pm at Portishead Medical Group.

• Childhood Immunisations: These appointments are made by the central Child Health team. A letter will be sent to the parent/guardian with the appointment details. Appointments are held at Portishead Medical Group.

• Chronic Disease Monitoring:  including coronary heart disease, stroke and hypertension. Patients will receive a letter inviting them to make an appointment with a Practice Nurse. This can be arranged by phone or at reception. These appointments last 15 minutes.

• COPD Clinics: Patients will receive a letter inviting them to make an appointment with a Practice Nurse. This can be arranged by phoning or coming in to reception. These appointments last 30 minutes.
  

• Contraceptive Implants or Coils: Following an initial discussion with a GP, appointments can be made at reception.

• Cortisone / Steroid Injections: This needs to have been agreed by a GP. A 20 minute appointment with a GP is required

• Counselling and Psychological Therapies: Vita Minds (for Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire) offer a variety of short-term psychological therapies for conditions such as depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. It is possible to refer yourself into the service, or to refer someone that you are concerned about. Click here to visit the website

• Crossroads Care are available in the Health Centre between 1 and 2.30 p.m. on the second Thursday of each month.

• Diabetes Clinics: Patients will receive a letter inviting them to arrange a blood test then a follow up appointment with a diabetic nurse. This can be arranged by phoning or coming in to reception. These appointments last 25-30 minutes.

• Dietitian: You may be referred by a clinician to see the dietitian Jackie Wilson. She usually offers one clinic a month at Portishead Medical Group. Appointments can be booked at reception.

• Dressings: Appointments can be booked at reception.

• Ear Syringing: This service will cease from January 2020 (unless required for a referral to Secondary Care).

  Ear syringing is no longer considered to be the first line treatment for the clearing of ear wax and it is not a funded service within the NHS for General Practice.Further information and treatment options are available in our ‘Ear Wax Self Help Guide’ (click here to view) or you can pick up a copy from our waiting room. If you have ear symptoms that concern you, please book an appointment with one of our clinicians.

• ECGs: If requested by a clinician our Reception Team will be happy to book an appointment in our Treatment Room.

• Flu Clinics: Patients aged 65 and over are automatically eligible for the flu vaccine and are invited to make an appointment even if they have not received an invitation letter. Patients under 65 in an ‘at risk group’ will receive a letter. Clinics usually run from September to December and are held at the Folk Hall on the High Street and at Portishead Medical Group.

• Maternity Care: Information is available from reception to register your pregnancy. The midwives will then get in touch with you directly. Appointments are held at Portishead Medical Group.

• New Patient Health Checks: These are available in our Drop In Blood Pressure Clinics (see above)

• NHS Health Checks: For patients aged 40 – 74. Due to a very limited number of appointments allocated to us, we write to a small number of patients each month asking whether they would like an NHS Health Check. Appointments can be made at reception.

• Pneumococcal Immunisation Clinics: Letters will be sent to eligible patients inviting them to contact us to book an appointment. Only 1 vaccination is needed in your lifetime.

• Private Medical Services for services not funded by the NHS such as medicals, licence applications or private sick notes. Please ask at reception for more details.

• Shingles Immunisation Clinics: Letters will be sent to eligible patients inviting them to contact us to book an appointment.

• Spirometry: Those appointments are booked by our medical administration team who will send you a letter with an appointment.

• Travel Advice and Immunisations: Appointments can be booked at reception – for more information please click here. If you have less than 6 weeks before travelling, you will need to go to a private provider.

• Warfarin Monitoring Clinics: Patients on Warfarin will need to regularly book in to these clinics. This can be arranged at reception or within the warfarin monitoring clinic.

• 24 Hour Blood Pressure Monitoring: These appointments are booked by our medical administration team who will send you a letter with an appointment.

• 24 Hour ECG Monitoring: These appointments are booked by our medical administration team who will send you a letter with an appointment.

Maternity Care

If you are pregnant the Portishead Midwives will be delighted to see you in order to plan your ante-natal care. This will involve taking your medical history and also that of your partner and families. We will give you details of screening tests that are available and also provide general advice about the do's and don't of pregnancy. 

All this should take up to an hour. We will contact you to arrange a mutually convenient time between 8 and 10 weeks of pregnancy. A dating scan and nuchal translucency ultrasound (for Down's Syndrome risk) will be offered at 10-13 weeks of pregnancy. 

Please pick up a pregnancy information pack from reception. This contains important information about the antenatal screening programme and screening tests for your newborn baby.There is also a registration form that needs to be completed and returned to the midwives as soon as you are aware you are pregnant. It is important to do so otherwise they will not be able to contact you and important screening tests may be missed. 

If you have any queries or worries, we are happy to talk to you. You can contact us during surgery hours; please leave a message on the answer machine if we are not available. Phone the surgery number (01275 841630) and choose option 3.

The midwives look forward to meeting you soon.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT PREGNANCY AND NHS MATERNITY SERVICES

NHS Health Checks

The NHS Health Check programme aims to help prevent heart disease, stroke, diabetes, kidney disease and certain types of dementia. Everyone between the ages of 40 and 74, who has not already been diagnosed with one of these conditions or has certain risk factors, will be invited (once every five years) to have a check to assess their risk of developing these conditions. If identified to be at a higher risk than average you will be given support and advice to help reduce or manage that risk.

http://www.healthcheck.nhs.uk/

• If you have been invited for a health check we would appreciate it if you could complete our health questionnaire and bring it with you to your appointment. Please click here for the questionnaire.

• A copy of the invitation letter can be viewed here

Travel Vaccinations

As you will be aware, GP surgeries are working under increasing pressure and so we are having to prioritise the services that we provide. As we receive no funding to provide travel clinics and they tend to be very time consuming, we have had to make some changes to the way that we run this service in order to protect other, more critical clinical services.

We are happy to provide travel advice for all individuals going on holiday irrespective of the number of countries being visited or how long the trip is. We are happy to advise both holiday makers and business travellers but we are not able to provide immunisations for occupational health (including education courses).

Please note that more than one appointment may be needed if you need several immunisations or a vaccine requires more than one injection. Vaccines can take up to 1 month to become fully effective.

• To ensure that you are fully protected your first travel appointment must take place at least 6 weeks before date of travel
• Therefore we recommend that you contact us 10-12 weeks before you travel to book an appointment.
• We regret that if you need vaccinations at short notice or demand for appointments is too high, it will be necessary to contact an alternative travel clinic (suggestions are shown in the Travel Information Leaflet ).

Please read and print the forms below

Travel Vaccination Form

Travel Information Leaflet

Some vaccines have to be ordered in as they are not held in stock. Vaccines that are not part of the usual vaccination schedule in the UK are not funded by the NHS and will have to be paid for. The nurse will discuss any charges that may apply. 

For further information on vaccinations and important travel advice please refer to the Fit For Travel website.

Non-NHS Services

Some services provided are not covered under our contract with the NHS and therefore attract charges. Examples include the following:

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  Medicals for pre-employment, sports and driving requirements (HGV, PSV etc.)

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  Insurance claim forms

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  Passport signing

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  Prescriptions for taking medication abroad

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  Private sick notes

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  Vaccination certificates

The fees charged are based on the British Medical Association (BMA) suggested scales and our reception staff will be happy to advise you about them along with appointment availability.