If you have concerns regarding your own or a family members memory please contact the practice to book an appointment 01606 544241

Patient advice Right to Choose Service Referral and Medications

You have asked your GP to refer you for an ADHD or ASD assessment and/or treatment service provider under your ‘Right to Choose’ (RTC). Your GP will write the referral and provide it to you or send it directly to your nominated provider at your request. If you have any queries about the appointment, please contact the provider directly.

Right to Choose Providers are usually private provider companies that hold an NHS contract with one or more NHS commissioners. When choosing a Right to Choose Provider it is important to consider the following points

Choice

Your GP cannot choose for you. You need to research the options and make the choice yourself then contact your GP to inform them of your chosen provider and they will advise you on how to proceed. One point of reference for RTC providers is ADHD UK: https://adhduk.co.uk/

Referral

The number of RTC providers is large and each provider may have its own referral process. It is not practical for your GP to complete a different referral process for every patient who chooses a different provider. Most providers need a core set of information so your GP may ask you to complete a questionnaire, and an ADHD self-assessment score as part of a standardised referral. If the provider needs additional information, they can request it from the practice or by asking you directly.

Diagnosis and follow-up

Most RTC providers exclusively perform remote and/or online assessments and the local NHS ADHD services may not have sufficient confidence in these diagnostic processes to accept their diagnoses. They may not take over your care unless they have completed their own assessment and diagnostic process. Therefore, your diagnosis may not be universally accepted, and you may find you cannot seek treatment and follow-up directly with local services following an RTC diagnosis.

Prescriptions

If you are diagnosed with ADHD, the RTC provider may suggest medications for you. The medications used for ADHD are restricted so that GPs cannot routinely prescribe them. The specialist service is responsible for prescribing them. They can request that your GP prescribes them under an agreement called a ‘shared care agreement’ but it is unlikely that your GP will be able to enter into this agreement for reasons of patient safety and resources. It is not safe for GPs to try to keep up with so many providers, each with their own contact details and processes when prescribing such safety critical medications.

Due to the nature of RTC providers, if the business stops trading for any reason or if they have their NHS contract removed then their care, and any prescriptions would more than likely cease which is another reason your GP may not feel it is safe, or good practice to enter into an agreement to prescribe for them.

When you are choosing your RTC provider you may find it useful to use this information to support your decision making and also to share with your chosen provider so that they are aware that their duty in prescribing, in particular, is unlikely to be taken over by your GP.

• Practice News

What is Social Prescribing?

Social Prescribing empowers people to take control of their health and wellbeing through referral to ‘link workers’ who give time, focus on ‘what matters to me’ and take a holistic approach to an individual’s health and wellbeing, connecting people to community groups and services for practical and emotional support. 

Social Prescriber referrals are for patients with issues that are impacting on health and wellbeing.  They are not clinical support but can provide support and information on different areas.

Areas of support:

• Finances
• Housing
• Social Isolation
• Employment
• Carer Support
• Bereavement

Non-Urgent Advice

Patients can be referred via their practice or patients can self-refer by emailing cmicb-cheshire.northwichsp@nhs.net or asking a member of the surgery team to refer on patients behalf.

What happens if I’m asked to speak to a Social Prescriber?

One of the team, Donna, Lauren or Wendy will contact you usually by telephone initially and a convenient appointment will be arranged.  These can be via telephone or in person. They will ask you a bit about yourself and explain the support they can offer you.

Your Care Co-ordinators at Oakwood are Kellie and Alison. Care co-ordinators within GP practices, act as a central point of support for patients to review needs and coordinate services allowing them to access what they need, when they need it. 

Who we can help 

Examples of patients who may want to access the service are:

• Recently discharged patients with ongoing care needs
• Patient with a new diagnosis who may need support from local or national groups
• Patients with long term or complex care needs
• Patients who frequently access the practice and/or other care environments

Non-urgent advice:How do I get a referral to these services? 

When you contact the practice your request will usually be triaged by the GP or healthcare professional If they feel you would benefit from the input of one of the team they will ask for you to be referred to our care coordinator.

Welcome to Sexual Health Cheshire West and Chester

We provide free and confidential sexual health services in Cheshire West and Chester including Winsford, Blacon and Ellesmere Port. Our services include providing free information and advice on all types of contraception and STI testing and treatment. Our service is confidential, non-judgemental and for people of all ages, genders and orientations.

Everyone is welcome and you don’t need to see a GP first. You can book an appointment online 24/7 or speak to us on 0300 247 0020.  Our telephone line is open Monday – Thursday 9am- 5pm, Friday 9am-3:30pm & Saturday 9am-12:30pm

You may have heard about Mpox in the news recently. But what is it, what are the symptoms and how can you access help and information?

Sexual Health Services available in Chester West and Chester

• Sexual Health Counselling and advice
• Contraception (all types)
• Coil and implant fitting and removal
• Emergency contraception
• Screening and treatment for sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV
• Postal testing
• Express testing
• Pregnancy testing
• Referrals for termination of pregnancy
• Cervical screening
• PrEP- Pre-exposure prophylaxis
• PEPSE
• Vasectomy Services
• Hepatitis B vaccinations
• HPV vaccinations (for men who have sex with men)

Book an appointment online

Call 0300 247 0020

Sexual Health Clinics in Chester, Winsford, Ellesmere Port, Blacon and Northwich

Fountains Health Centre Sexual Health clinic 

Fountains Health, Delamere Street, Chester, CH1 4DS

Parking on site £1.50 for 2 hours following validation within the clinic.

Dene Drive

Dene Drive Primary Care Centre, Winsford, CW7 1AT

Parking on site free of charge.

Ellesmere Port, Stanney Lane Clinic

Stanney Lane, Ellesmere Port, CH65 9AE

Parking available within the Whitby car park, free of charge.

Blacon Children’s Centre

Carlisle Rd, Blacon, Chester, CH1 5DB

Parking free of charge.

Watling Street Clinic

Watling St, Northwich CW9 5EX

Parking on site, free of charge.

Neston Clinic

(next to Neston Surgery)
Mellock Lane
CH64 9RN

Parking on site, free of charge.

Call 0300 247 0020Monday – Thursday 9am- 5pm, Friday 9am-3:30pm & Saturday 9am-12:30pm

Inclusions

Children Aged between 3 months and 2 years

Red Irritated and sticky Eye

Exclusion

Child under 3 and over 2

Facial Swelling

Recent course of treatment

Headache, eye pain or had eye surgery

Oral thrush (mouth thrush)

Oral thrush is usually harmless. It’s common in babies and older people with dentures. It can be easily treated with medicines bought from a pharmacy.

Check if it’s oral thrush

Adults

Other symptoms in adults are:

• cracks at the corners of the mouth
• not tasting things properly
• an unpleasant taste in the mouth
• pain inside the mouth (for example, a sore tongue or sore gums)
• difficulty eating and drinking

Oral thrush in adults is not contagious.

Babies

Babies with oral thrush may not want to feed.

Babies can pass oral thrush on through breastfeeding. This can cause nipple thrush in mothers.

If you’re not sure it’s oral thrush

Look at other causes of a white or sore tongue.

A pharmacist can help with oral thrush

Oral thrush can be easily treated with a mouth gel bought from a pharmacy. The gel is suitable for adults, children and babies over the age of 4 months.

Ask your pharmacist for advice. Always follow the instructions on the medicine packet.

If you leave oral thrush untreated, the infection can spread to other parts of the body.

Non-urgent advice:See a GP if:

• your baby is under 4 months and has signs of oral thrush
• you have oral thrush and do not see any improvement after 1 week of treatment with a mouth gel
• you have difficulty or pain when swallowing

How you can prevent oral thrush

Oral thrush is an infection caused by a fungus called Candida. Some things can make the fungus grow more than usual.

You might get thrush if you’re:

• taking antibiotics over a long time
• using asthma inhalers
• having cancer treatment like chemotherapy

There are some things you can do to help prevent oral thrush.

Do

• take care of your teeth: brush twice a day, clean your dentures, and go for regular check-ups even if you have dentures
• brush your gums and tongue with a soft toothbrush if you do not have any teeth
• rinse your mouth after eating or taking medicine
• go to regular check-ups if you have a long-term condition like diabetes
• sterilise dummies regularly
• sterilise bottles after each use

Don’t

• do not wear dentures at night
• do not keep wearing dentures if they do not fit properly – see your dentist
• do not smoke

If you would like to request access to someone else’s medical records to book appointments, order medication, or view their health records, then they will need to complete a Proxy Access to Health Records if they are over the age of 11.

The Proxy form needs to be signed by the patient giving access. In some cases the Practice may need further information or may need to contact the patient directly to discuss this.

Please see the toolkits for more information on proxy access and the risks and benefits:

GP online services toolkit: Applications for proxy access

Please be aware that you will need to have online access and will have to have your own e-mail address.

If you are unsure about this please contact us to discuss.

(UTIs) Urinary tract infections (UTIs) affect your urinary tract, including your bladder (cystitis), urethra (urethritis) or kidneys (kidney infection). UTIs may be treated with antibiotics, but they’re not always needed.

If you have any of the following you can be referred under the minor ailments scheme to a local pharmacy who can prescribe you antibiotics.

Check if it’s a urinary tract infection (UTI)

Symptoms of a urinary tract infection (UTI) may include:

• pain or a burning sensation when peeing (dysuria)
• needing to pee more often than usual
• needing to pee more often than usual during the night (nocturia)
• needing to pee suddenly or more urgently than usual
• pee that looks cloudy or change in odour.
• Exclusions
• Under 18’s
• Over 65’s
• Pregnant or Breast Feeding
• Fever
• Liver/Kidney Impairment
• Had previous treatment in last 3 months

Contraception: Pill Checks, Depo Injections & Coil / Implant fittings

Menopause discussions and medications