Coronavirus Information

COVID vaccination and blood clotting

Here is an important update about the safety of the AstraZeneca Vaccination
Recently, there have been reports of a very rare condition involving blood clots and unusual bleeding after vaccination. Although this condition remains extremely rare there appears to be a higher risk in people shortly after the first dose of the AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccine.
Around 4 people develop this condition for every million doses of AZ vaccine doses given. This is seen slightly more often in younger people and tends to occur between 4 days and 2 weeks following vaccination. This is being carefully reviewed but the risk factors for this condition are not yet clear.
This condition can also occur naturally, and clotting problems are a common complication of COVID-19 infection. An increased risk has not yet been seen after other COVID-19 vaccines but is being carefully monitored.
Following advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), we will be offering people under 30 who have not yet had their first COVID-19 vaccination, a choice of vaccine other than AZ. If you choose to have an alternative vaccine you may have to wait to be protected. You may wish to go ahead with the AZ vaccination after you have considered all the risks and benefits for you.
This leaflet from Public Health England provides more information about the benefits and risks of the AZ COVID-19 vaccination.
If you have already had a first dose of AZ vaccine without suffering a blood clot as a side effect, you should have your second dose. This includes people aged 18 to 29 years who are health and social care workers and unpaid carers.
The benefits of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine outweigh any risks for the vast majority of people and you should still book your COVID-19 vaccine when asked to do so.

We Are Still Here For You

Don’t let fear of catching coronavirus mean that your cancer or other serious illness gets missed while it’s curable!

Many types of cancer or serious illness are straightforward to treat and cure if you catch them early, but since the beginning of the outbreak of Covid-19, there has been a big drop in the number of people who are going to their GP with signs of important illness. If you are tempted to stay at home and wait until the Covid crisis is over to get your symptoms checked out, please think again, and make an appointment to talk to a GP about any worrying concerns, such as any persistent unexplained bruising, persistent vomiting,  weight loss or persistent fevers, lumps, moles which are changing, difficulty swallowing your food, persistent cough ( more than 3 weeks), post-menopausal bleeding, persistent change in your bowels towards looseness that continues for more than 3 weeks, or blood in your poo (for more than 2 weeks) or pee . There is a real risk that, if left unchecked, any cancer or other serious condition present could grow and spread, making it much more difficult to treat successfully. At Nightingale Valley Practice we can arrange many of the tests you might need over the phone, and if we do need to see you in person, we have strict infection control procedures designed for your safety, which minimise the chances of anyone who comes to the surgery catching Covid-19.

Don’t let Covid-19 reduce your chances of a successful cure from cancer or other serious conditions – help catch these early by making an appointment with your GP if you have any worrying symptoms.

Requesting an isolation note

From Friday 20th March onwards, those who have coronavirus or are advised to self-isolate will be able to obtain an "isolation note" by visiting NHS 111 online and completing an online form, rather than visiting a doctor.

For coronavirus cases this replaces the usual need to provide a "fit note" after seven days of sickness absence.  Isolation notes will also be accepted by JobCentre Plus as evidence of your inability to attend.

You can access the request form by visiting https://111.nhs.uk/isolation-note/

Following the update from the government please go to https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/  for more information if you need any further information

Together, with other tenants of Brooklea Health Centre, we have now reviewed our services and the regular questions we are being asked and can confirm the following:

Appointments

  • All face to face GP appointments and chronic disease appointments will initially be dealt with over the phone. If a clinician decides they need to see you face to face they will call you to Brooklea Health Centre for a face to face appointment. If it is deemed there is a risk of coronavirus, a separate area has been set up, and the clinician will be wearing appropriate PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) and you will be given instructions on how to access the health centre to protect our staff and other patients.  You may be asked to wear a mask.
  • We will continue to do baby checks, immunisations (excluding travel), coil and implants, urgent bloods, smears and wound care. However we do ask that if you or any member of your household are displaying any symptoms of coronavirus or have been in contact with someone who has then you tell us in advance and should not attend the surgery unless explicitly told to do so.  This is to protect our staff and other patients.
  • We will be cancelling travel immunisations and any private work eg HGV medicals
  • We will conduct learning difficulty reviews over the phone
  • We will continue to do home visits where it is clinically indicated

Reception

Our receptionists will be wearing masks.

To allow for personal space we have placed tape at the reception desk for patients to know the safe distance required.

Prescriptions

We have had many questions regarding prescriptions. We would encourage you to set up patient access online to ease the ordering of repeat prescriptions – ask a receptionist how to set this up. Or you can speak to your pharmacy to ask them to request prescriptions on your behalf.

Other

We all want to stay safe and still deliver a service to you.  That is why it is so important that if you or any member of your household are displaying any symptoms of coronavirus or have been in contact with someone who has then you should not attend the surgery unless explicitly told to do so. 

We hope to keep you updated on a regular basis and in the meantime please stay safe.