NHS General Practice

The Fairlands Practice is a partnership of six doctors and two associates working from our main surgery in Worplesdon, near Guildford, Surrey and a branch surgery in the nearby village of Normandy. We provide services in modern, purpose built medical centres and offer both NHS and a range of private services. The main surgery was opened in 1998 and offers the additional on-site facilities of Rowlands Pharmacy and the Fairlands Dental Centre. The branch surgery at Glaziers Lane, Normandy has a dispensary for eligible patients. All of our main consulting rooms are on the ground floor and both surgeries provide facilities for the disabled to access all of the services available.

We are a GP training Practice and have registrars in General Practice who are in the final stages of their training. They are fully qualified with at least three years postgraduate hospital experience and are available for consultation alongside the partners. We also have other doctors and nurses undertaking training at this Practice, both undergraduate and postgraduate under the new Foundation Teaching Programme, seeking to gain experience in community and General Practice work. All doctors, whether or not they are to be general practitioners now have to spend time in general practice and we hope to offer them a valuable experience here.

We are always looking to gather your views on the services offered at the Practice. Please contact Sarah Casemore, Practice Manager, with any comments or suggestions that you may have.

For a copy of our latest practice newsletter please click here

Appointments

At the practice we operate an appointment system which is compliant with the latest Government requirements for 48 hour access to see a GP. Based on similiar schemes in other Practices throughout Surrey and the UK and to meet the high demand on services throughout the winter months, we run a daily telephone call back service for patients who have requested to be seen the same day. The call is logged with the duty doctor and the patient is telephoned back within 2 hours. This 'triage system' allows a large number of patient enquiries to be dealt with over the telephone, and if required based on this discussion, the patient is asked to attend the surgery for a face to face consultation.

No appointments to see a doctor can be booked more than two weeks in advance. This is important as it avoids the need to cancel appointments for patients when unforeseen circumstances occur. Please note that during peak annual leave times, locum doctors will be employed to cover sessions during your registered doctors absence.

If you are unable to keep an appointment with a Doctor or Nurse , please email feedback@fairlands.co.uk or telephone 01483 594250

NEW-- Staff vacancy

We are looking for a Practice Nurse to initially cover maternity leave from the end of April 2010 with a view to a permanent position after this time. Please look in the staff vacancies page under the 'Doctors and Staff section' for more details or click on Job description and application form . If you are interested in this position, please contact Sarah Casemore, Practice Manager, to discuss it further.

NEW -- Podiatry service

‘Feel good about your feet ’

We are pleased to welcome Deborah Rockell, a private podiatrist & chiropodist who will be starting a new service with us at Fairlands from 11 February every Thursday from 10am-2pm. On 11 February she will be offering free consultations to clients and thereafter initial consultations will be £15. More details to follow. To book, please contact 01483 594250.

Treatment offered for had skin, corns, ingrown toenails, thickened nails, foot pain, verrucae, cracks/fissures, cryosurgery, biomechanics & orthotics.

Winter vomiting bug

NHS Surrey would like to remind patients that a trip to your GP or hospital is not usually necessary. Norovirus (winter vomiting) can cause a sudden attack of vomiting, often accompanied by diarrhoea and stomach pains. The illness usually lasts around 2 days and most people can recover by resting at home and drinking plenty of liquids. Please remember that spread will be reduced if good hand washing is carried out especially before meals. If you get the bug, please do not visit hospitals as this will increase the spread of the infection. You are advised to stay at home until the symptoms have disappeared and you have been well for at least 2 full days.

However, these bugs can be more serious for the elderly, babies and young children and people who have asthma or other health complications. If you are concerned you should ring your GP or call NHS Direct on 084504647 for advice.

If a member of your family or someone you are caring for or work with has been in contact with someone showing symptoms of swine flu, it is important to monitor their health closely over the next seven days. If they remain well, there is no need to take any further precautions. However if they begin to experience ‘flu-type' symptoms, they should stay at home and call the national pandemic flu service number on 0800 1 513 100 or visit www.pandemicflu.direct.gov.uk (available until 1am on 11 February)

It is very important they do not visit their GP practice or A&E to prevent the spread of the virus. However if the patient is pregnant; under 13 years old; or has worsening chronic disease symptoms due to the virus, please telephone the surgery directly on 01483 594250 and a doctor will be happy to provide a telephone consultation. We will try to keep you updated but also point you at the latest information, including frequently asked questions, online at www.surreyhealth.nhs.uk

The national swine flu information leaflet can be downloaded here

If you are eligible and would like to book an appointment for a vaccination please contact us. The priority groups are as follows: aged 6 months to 65 years in a current 'at risk' group (see below); pregnant women; household contacts of immunocompromised individuals; people over 65 who are in an 'at risk' group (see below) and children aged 3 months to under 5 years of age.

At risk groups are those who have chronic respiratory disease which requires continuous or repeated use of inhaled or systemic steroids or with previous hospital admissions; chronic heart disease; chronic renal disease; chronic liver disease; chronic neurological disease; diabetes; or immunosuppression.

Pharmacy

Rowlands Pharmacy is located in the Practice building providing our patients with the convenience of immediate access and to the expertise of very well equipped pharmacy service.

Dentistry

The Fairlands Dental Centre is now open for both private and NHS patients on the first floor of the Medical Centre . If you would like to register, please enquire directly at the dental practice reception or contact 01483 233823. Website available at www.fairlandsdental.co.uk

Private Services

Since the opening of the Fairlands Medical Centre we have been trying to offer our patients a range of services that have not always been easily available to them under the NHS. These services currently include physiotherapy, osteopathy, acupuncture and counselling.. For full details of these services please click the service above or the 'Private Services' link on the left.