If you have a complaint or concern about the service you have received from the doctors or any of the personnel working in this practice, please let us know.  We operate a practice complaint procedure as part of an NHS complaints system, which meets or exceeds national criteria.

How Can I Make A Compliant?

We hope that we can sort most problems out easily and quickly, often at the time they arise and with the person concerned. If you wish to make a formal complaint, please do so AS SOON AS POSSIBLE – ideally within a matter of a few days. This will enable us to establish what happened more easily.  If doing that is not possible your complaint should be submitted within 12 months of the incident that caused the problem; or within 12 months of discovering that you have a problem.

You should address your complaint in writing to the Practice Manager Mrs Jaydee Lakin (you can use the attached form or write to us separately). We will make sure that we deal with your concerns promptly and in the correct way. You should be as specific and concise as possible.

How Can I Make a Complaint On Behalf Of Someone else ?

We keep strictly to the rules of medical confidentiality (a separate leaflet giving more detail on confidentiality is available on request).  If you are not the patient, but are complaining on their behalf, you must have their permission to do so.  An authority signed by the person concerned will be needed unless they are incapable (because of illness or infirmity) of providing this. A Third-Party Consent Form is provided below.

What Happens Next?

We will acknowledge your complaint within 3 working days and aim to have fully investigated within 10 working days of the date it was received.  If we expect it to take longer we will explain the reason for the delay and tell you when we expect to finish. When we look into your complaint, we will investigate the circumstances; make it possible for you to discuss the problem with those concerned; make sure you receive an apology if this is appropriate and take steps to make sure any problem does not arise again.

You will receive a final letter setting out the result of any practice investigations.

What If I am Not Happy With The Way My Compliant Was Dealt With

If you remain dissatisfied with the outcome you may refer the matter to:

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
Millbank Tower
Millbank
London
SW1P 4QP

Tel 0345 0154033

www.ombudsman.org.uk

Download Our Complaints Procedure 

The practice complies with data protection and access to medical records legislation. Identifiable information about you will be shared with others in the following circumstances:​

• To provide further medical treatment for you e.g. from district nurses and hospital services.
• To help you get other services e.g. from the social work department.
• This requires your consent.
• When we have a duty to others e.g. in child protection cases anonymized patient information will also be used at the local and national level to help the Health Board and Government plan services e.g. for diabetic care.

If you do not wish anonymous information about you to be used in such a way, please let us know.

Reception and administration staff require access to your medical records in order to do their jobs. These members of staff are bound by the same rules of confidentiality as the medical staff.

Information about the General Practitioners and the practice required for disclosure under this act can be made available to the public. All requests for such information should be made to the practice manager.

​Access to Records

In accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998, The GDPR  and Access to Health Records Act, patients may request to see their medical records.

Such requests should be made through the practice manager and may be subject to an administration charge. No information will be released without patient consent unless we are legally obliged to do so.

All GP Practices are required to declare the mean earnings (eg average pay) for GP’s working to deliver NHS services to patients at each practice.

The average pay for GP’s working in The Bridge Surgery in the last financial year was £93,555 before tax and national insurance. This is for 2 full time GP’s and 0 Locum GPs who worked in the practice for longer than six months 

Private Work Fees

The NHS provides most health services to people free of charge (although there are some exceptions such as prescription charges).  For services that are not covered by the NHS there is a private fee to cover the responsibility taken and the time spent by doctors and administrative staff. The British Medical Association provides a guide to the fees that GPs can charge. We aim to keep the charges for professional services at an appropriate level..

Some services provided fall outside the scope of the NHS  include the following:

• Medicals for pre-employment, sports and driving requirements (HGV, PSV etc.)
• Insurance claim forms
• Private sick notes
• Vaccination certificates
• Housing letters

Please send us your request and we will advise you of the charge. 

Why do I have to pay?

The NHS provides most health services to people free of charge (although there are some exceptions such as prescription charges).  For services that are not covered by the NHS there is a private fee to cover the responsibility taken and the time spent by doctors and administrative staff. The British Medical Association provides a guide to the fees that GPs can charge. We aim to keep the charges for professional services at an appropriate level.

What is and isn’t covered?

The Government’s contract with GP’s does include the completion of some specialist forms (eg from the Department of Work and Pensions) and some organizations pay GP’s directly to complete reports (eg DVLA and certain insurance company reports).  These are usually sent directly to the GP, so if you have been given a form to bring it’s likely that you will need to pay a fee.  Some examples and the relevant charges are listed on the back of this leaflet.  If you are unsure about anything, please ask.

Why can’t I get it done here and now?

At The Bridge Surgery we want to spend our time providing excellent quality healthcare to our patients.  Completing the increasing number of reports that are requested takes time away from patient care.  We acknowledge that these reports are important to you and need to be completed, but clinical care has to be our priority.  We will aim to complete short reports and letters within 2 weeks.  More complex reports may take up to 4 weeks.

Why do I have to pay up front?

In the past doctors have written many letters and completed many forms that have not subsequently been collected.  This has wasted valuable time which could have been used for patient care.

But all I need is a doctor to sign it!

When a doctor signs a certificate or report, it is a condition of the Medical Register that they only sign what they know to be true.  In order to complete even the simplest of forms, the doctor may have to read a large amount of medical records. Carelessness or an inaccurate report may have considerable negative effect on you and may have serious consequences on the doctor with the General Medical Council (GMC) or even the police.

I just need a signature to say that I’m healthy to do it!

Increasingly more and more requests have been received asking for a signature to say that someone is healthy to pursue a particular activity.  Unfortunately, there is no simple test to say anyone is “healthy” to do any activity.  The GP may not be able to sign such a form, or may write an explanation of the limitations of what they can say on the form.  We cannot be responsible for whether the company accepts what the doctor is willing to write. As GPs we may not be able to sign a form which you ask us to as our intention is to always act in the best interests of our patients and to maintain the safest medical practice so a refusal to complete a form is no way intended to offend.

Some misconceptions

There are some common misconceptions about the need for a doctor’s letter in certain circumstances. These include Blue Badge letters, passport applications, letters for school exam boards and letters to the council housing trust.  Below are three common examples.  Please help us to keep our time focussed on patient care and avoid asking for these.  They can be provided if really required, but there will be a charge.

I need a Blue Badge!

Application for a blue badge doesn’t need a GP’s letter. Worcestershire County Council’s official advice states, “Please do not request evidence from your GP.  If you have problems supplying written evidence, please visit your local Worcestershire hub customer service centre for further information.”

I need a letter for the Housing Trust/Council

Housing trusts and local authorities have their own medical advisers.  Please contact the trust directly if you have a medical issue related to your housing or application for housing.

I’ve missed an exam!

A letter to confirm sickness having missed an exam is not usually required by exam boards.  Ofqual states, “Awarding Organisations make no requirement for pupils to obtain a medical certificate in support of an application for special consideration.”

Certificate of medication/Fit to Fly

Please check with your airline first, to determine if this is needed. We can write a simple factual letter confirming the medication you take and any equipment you might need to administer if. If you are a diabetic and use insulin, you may require a letter of permission to carry syringes/needles/lancets into the cabin, and for icepacks (containing .100ml coolant) to store insulin at the required temperature.

New Shared Care Record delivering better, safer care for all our patients

We wanted to let you know that we are finally connecting our systems to offer joined-up health and care records, which will enable better, safer care and treatment for all our patients.

​As a GP, it is difficult to provide joined-up care with so many separate systems for handling patient information. These were not connected, meaning that you often had to repeat your story each time you received care at a different organisation, or with a different health professional. The Shared Care Record means up-to-date records will be immediately available to professionals caring for you as a patient, when you need direct care.

​It will mean, for instance, a doctor in a hospital, or a paramedic who attends a 999 call will be able to confidentially access the same crucial information that we can at the Practice, such as details of any allergies and current medications, bringing potentially life-saving benefits.

​Robust security measures are in place to protect your health information and all staff must follow the law on keeping your information confidential.

The Shared Care Record is not the same as the General Practice Data for Planning and Research Directions (GPDPR), which is a national NHS Digital initiative to use GP practice data for research and planning purposes.

The Shared Care Record is a local initiative to share information with organisations directly involved in your care to ensure that you receive prompt and appropriate treatment when you need it. 

​For more information, please visit: https://herefordshireandworcestershireccg.nhs.uk/health-services/shared-care-record

We are always looking at ways to improve our communication with patients, so we are now offering an SMS messaging service for appointment reminders.

Care will be taken to ensure that no personal information is released using this service and the practice will continue to observe the strictest controls with regard to holding your personal information in confidence.

Initially, an SMS text message will be sent containing your appointment details once you have booked an appointment. A further message will be sent 48 hours before the appointment is due as a reminder.

In the future, we will be looking to introduce a more interactive form of SMS text messaging which will allow you to cancel your appointment by text if you are no longer able to attend. This facility will allow us to send you health promotion initiatives such as flu jabs and NHS Health Check invitations.

If you have a mobile phone, are over 16 and would like to receive SMS text messages then please complete the slip below.

You may withdraw your consent at any time by notifying Reception either verbally or in writing

You can now register to receive information by text message on your phone regarding appointments and health care.

The GDPR is the new EU legislation to protect the personal data of all EU citizens. It will apply even if we are no longer part of the EU. It will be a significant change in Data protection for all of the UK, including the NHS and healthcare providers GDPR came into effect in the UK on 25 May 2018.

As a practice we are committed to ; 

• Ensuring the security and protection of personal information and how it is processed 
• Providing a compliant and consistent approach to data protection
• Complying with the requirements of the GDPR.
• This means that your health and care data will carry on being handled securely and in line with the regulations.

The documents linked below explain how we, The Bridge Surgery use the data we hold about our patients and your rights. And for more information, you can visit 

Keeping Your Data Safe

Subject Access Policy

The NHS operate a zero tolerance policy with regard to violence and abuse and the practice has the right to remove violent patients from the list with immediate effect in order to safeguard practice staff, patients and other persons. Violence in this context includes actual or threatened physical violence or verbal abuse which leads to fear for a person’s safety. In this situation we will notify the patient in writing of their removal from the list and record in the patient’s medical records the fact of the removal and the circumstances leading to it.

The Bridge Surgery is committed to taking all reasonable precautions necessary to ensure the health, safety, welfare and well-being of its employees, patients and visitors, and endeavours to ensure that all employees are protected from physical and verbal abuse while they are working.

The Practice acknowledges that there may be instances where violence and / or aggression forms part of a patient’s illness.  In these circumstances, the issue will be discussed with the patient and form part of their care planning.

This information will be recorded in the patient’s medical record and flagged to ensure that staff is aware. In addition, where deemed necessary, appropriate support will be put in place, e.g. staff member does not see the patient alone.

The practice will display information within the waiting room advising that we operate a zero-tolerance policy; staff will be trained in managing violent and aggressive behaviour and will make every effort to de-escalate an incident.

All incidents will be recorded within patient record, the practice manager will be advised of the incident and an initial warning letter will be sent to patient giving warning that they may be asked to leave the practice.

In the event that a further incident occurs patients will be sent a further letter advising of our zero-tolerance policy and be given 30days notice to find an alternative practice.

Definition Inappropriate and unacceptable behaviours may include but are not limited to:

• Using bad language/swearing at practice staff or other service users
• Racial abuse
• Sexual harassment
• Unnecessarily persistent or unrealistic service demands that cause disruption
• Causing damage to practice premises or to the property of staff or other service users
• Stealing from practice premises, staff, or other service users
• Obtaining drugs and/or medical services fraudulently

The Practice supports the NHS policy of Zero Tolerance which defines violence as:

“Any incident where staff are abused, threatened or assaulted in circumstances related to their work, involving an explicit or implicit challenge to their safety, well-being or health”.

Violence and aggression towards a person may also be defined as:

“A physical contact with another person which may or may not result in pain or injury. The contact is uninvited and is an attempt to cause harm, injury or to intimidate. Non-physical aggression includes the use of language which causes offence or threatens the safety of a member of staff”.