Patient Participation Group Spring Newsletter

Spring 2024

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A Spring update from the PPG and the staff of Banbury Cross Health Centre

A veteran is anyone who has served for at least one day in the Armed Forces, whether as a regular or reservist. It means the same as ‘ex service personnel’ or ‘ex-forces’, although not all veterans know the term or choose to associate with the term ‘veteran’. Younger veterans might refer to themselves as ‘ex-forces’, in the belief that a veteran is someone who fought in the Second World War.

We have a designated trained GP lead, Dr Gupta.

If you have a health problem not caused by your time in the armed forces, you may go on to a waiting list before you can receive full treatment from the NHS. This is the usual process for NHS treatment.

If you have a health problem caused by your time in the armed forces, you will usually go on a waiting list before you receive care. However, you may be able to receive NHS care quicker than normal through priority treatment for veterans. Priority treatment is not guaranteed. Receiving priority treatment depends on your situation and the nature of the treatment required.

If you are registered with us, please let us know if you are a veteran by completing our Contact Us form.

Feedback

It would be good to have some feedback from readers about the newsletter, do you like it, or perhaps not? Is there anything you would like included? Do you have any ideas for it? 

All comments welcome by email to the editor at: alanecooper@talktalk.net

Pharmacy Department - a message from Donald Mciver lead pharmacist

Hi - I am Donald and I am the Lead Pharmacist working in your surgery.

I am part of a team of 6 pharmacists in the surgery. Most of us have been at the surgery for a few years now. You may well find one of us doing your annual Asthma review or your Blood pressure review amongst other things.

We do a lot of background work to free up GP time e.g. process your hospital letters regarding medicines or sending out reminders to you to have your medications monitored. One of our pharmacists is part of the Mental Health team.

You may well be directed to our team if you have a medication query or are suffering with side effects with your medicine.

We can also do Medication reviews with you, and this might involve starting or stopping medicines, making sure they are working for you and safe for you to take. Some of us can prescribe medicines for you in certain conditions.

Pharmacy First  - In this job things are changing all the time. You might also find the surgery now referring you to our community pharmacy colleagues more often. The Pharmacy First scheme has only been running for a few weeks. Under this scheme you can be directed to a local pharmacy for treatment of many minor ailments e.g. sore throats, coughs and colds, impetigo, infected insect bites and shingles. This gives you another option- it might mean that you are seen more quickly or closer to home and they can give you many of the medicines your GP might prescribe to you.

Recipe Corner - Bara Brith

Method:

• Soak sugar and dried fruit in the tea overnight.
• Next day mix in the egg, flour and spices.
• Line and grease the loaf tin and put the mixture in it.
• Bake for 1 hour at 180 deg C or 350 deg F or gas mark 4 after cooling glaze with honey if you like.

Enjoy!

There is an AFB Older People’s Voice Group which meets every couple of months and welcomes new members to help partners understand what older residents think and wish to see changed or improved. The group conducts ‘walking audits’ around Banbury to see how age-friendly it is to older residents.

Age Friendly Banbury partners include the BCHC Social Prescribers.

AFB partners can be found at the Castle Quay hub near HMV every so often, where they enjoy hearing from local older people about what makes Banbury a great place to grow older, and what priorities residents would like to see addressed. There is a notice board and leaflets about local services, activities, and opportunities. The hub is open every weekday, and anyone is welcome to drop by and pick up information.

Each month there is a free, online Age Friendly Banbury newsletter full of events, activities and opportunities for older people and partner organisations, which is also printed and placed in the castle Quay Community Hub and at BCHC.  

To subscribe and to read more, follow this link to the Age Friendly Banbury website or contact Bee Myson, Coordinator, on 07500285909.

Banbury Cross Health Centre PPG

Patient Participation Group
C/O Banbury Cross Health Centre
South Bar House
6 Oxford Road
Banbury, OX16 9AD
Email BCHC.PPG@gmail.com
tel: 01295 256261

Telephone Options:

1   Covid Vaccinations (Info only)
2   Child Flu Vaccinations (Info only)
3   Sick note requests 11.00 to 18.00 hrs
4   Prescription queries
5   Test results    11.00 to 18.00 hrs
6   Hospital referrals 11.00 to 16.30 hrs
7   Blood tests    11.00 to 18.00 hrs
8   Treatment room 11.00 to 18.00 hrs
9   Long term conditions  11.00 to 18.00
0   On the day appointments
#   Healthcare Professionals
*    All other enquiries11.00 to 18.00 hrs

And don’t forget to use the queuebuster to save having to hold on for a long time.

Joke Section

"Mom? Don't freak out, but I'm in the hospital..."
"Jeremy, you've been a doctor for over 8 years now, please stop starting every phone conversation we have with that."

Patient says, "Doctor I have pain in my eye whenever I drink tea."
Doctor says, "Take the spoon out of your mug." 

A man went to the doctor and was told he had an iron deficiency. "How do you know that?" He asked.
"Because your shirt is creased." Came the reply.

Surgery Opening Hours

Monday - 8am to 6.30pm
Tuesday - 8am to 6.30pm
Wednesday - 8am to 6.30pm
Thursday - 8am to 6.30pm
Friday - 8am to 6.30pm

And finally, don’t forget, in the event of a  minor out of hours emergency call 111. 

In the unhappy event of a major emergency call 999. 

Alternatively,  make your own way to the A & E department at your nearest hospital.

Disclaimer: All opinions expressed in this newsletter are those of the PPG and may not necessarily be those of the practice and that the intention of the PPG is to support the patients and practice at all times.

Published: Aug 8, 2024