What is an NHS Health Check?

An NHS Health Check is a free health assessment offered to adults in England aged 40-74. It’s designed to help prevent common health issues before they develop, including heart disease, stroke, diabetes, kidney disease, and certain types of dementia. By identifying potential risks early, the health check aims to help you take action to reduce your risk and stay healthy for longer.

Who is Eligible?

You are eligible for a free NHS Health Check if you:

• Are aged 40-74
• Do not already have a pre-existing condition such as heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, or have had a stroke

What to Expect During Your Health Check

Your NHS Health Check will take about 20-30 minutes and will include the following:

• Questions About Your Health and Lifestyle: You’ll be asked about your family history, smoking status, and level of physical activity.
• Measurements: Your height, weight, age, sex, and ethnicity will be noted to calculate your body mass index (BMI).
• Blood Pressure Check: This will help assess your risk of cardiovascular diseases.
• Blood Test: A small blood sample will be taken to measure your cholesterol levels and, in some cases, your blood sugar levels.

After Your Health Check

After your check, your healthcare professional will discuss your results with you. You will receive personalized advice on how to lower your risk of developing any health issues. This might include recommendations for:

• Diet and Nutrition: Tips on healthy eating habits to manage your weight and improve your overall health.
• Physical Activity: Advice on how to increase your activity levels to maintain a healthy heart and body.
• Lifestyle Changes: Support to help you quit smoking or reduce alcohol intake if necessary.

If the health check identifies any specific concerns or conditions, you may be referred for further tests or treatment.

Benefits of an NHS Health Check

• Early Detection: Catch potential health problems early when they are easier to manage.
• Personalized Advice: Receive tailored advice to improve your health and reduce risk factors.
• Peace of Mind: Knowing your health status can help you make informed decisions about your lifestyle.

How to Book an NHS Health Check

To book your NHS Health Check, please contact our reception team by calling us, sending an online request, or by popping into the surgery.

We also invite patients via a text message which has a direct link to book an appointment.

There are a lot of services available to support people with mental health issues. Contents

1. Services for adults
2. Services for children
3. Feeling suicidal

All our doctors are trained to help people suffering from mental health problems. Making an appointment is a good place to start if you are looking for help.

There are also lots of other services locally that are there to support you, many of whom you can refer yourself to.

Services for adults

• If you are aged 17 or older then a good place to start is the Mindwellwebsite. It is designed to help you understand the common problems that people face and the range of services here to help. It also offers help to those who are worried about others.
• You might have heard your GP or friend talk about IAPT. This is a range of services that we commonly refer our patients to when they have problems with mental health. Here is a list of what IAPT offer, you can also refer yourself to this service from their website.

Services for children

If you are aged 16 or under, then a good place to start is the MindMatewebsite.

MindMate is specifically aimed at young people and can help you understand the way you are feeling and find the right advice and support. It also offers advice for parents.

Feeling suicidal

If we are open, then please call now to book an urgent same day appointment with one of our doctors.

If we are not open, or you would prefer to get help elsewhere, then please click one of the links below:

I am 17 and older and need help now

I am 16 or younger and need urgent help

We work closely with other services to help support people and their families at this very difficult time.

The local service

Together as a team we work with individuals and their families to address physical, emotional, social, spiritual and financial issues.

The core team includes a GP, District Nurse and MacMillan Nurse.

Please book with your GP if you or someone you care for needs help now.

Advice

The Sue Ryder website has some excellent articles called Practical & Emotional Advice, we recommend them highly. Don’t forget to click on the ‘load more’ button on the bottom of the first page, its easy to miss.

Other useful sites

NHS choices page on end of life care.

Also Leeds Palliative Care has a wealth of information on local services.

Wheatfields hospice

St Gemma’s hospice

Health Visitors

Health Visitors are all trained nurses who have extra training and qualifications in child health. They are a fantastic source of information about child development and health, parenting strategies, breastfeeding, nutrition and community support. They also offer help with social, emotional and environmental issues that affect families.

Contact number: 01138435683

Website: Leeds Community Healthcare – 0-19 Health and Wellbeing

Child Health Checks

Appointments are sent out automatically for routine child health checks.

The first will be with a GP at the surgery when your baby is around 6 weeks old. You will be sent information about this and asked to make an appointment at the practice.

You will also be offered routine health reviews for your child, with your health visitor, at 6-8 weeks, 8-12 months and 2-2½ years old.

Child Immunisations and Schedule

Immunisations are given by our practice nurses in accordance with the NHS vaccine schedule.

Further information on the schedule and vaccines in general can be found on NHS vaccinations page.

Age	Vaccines
8 weeks	6-in-1 vaccine Rotavirus vaccine MenB vaccine
12 weeks	6-in-1 vaccine (2nd dose) Pneumococcal vaccine Rotavirus vaccine (2nd dose)
16 weeks	6-in-1 vaccine (3rd dose) MenB vaccine (2nd dose)
1 year	Hib/MenC vaccine (1st dose) MMR vaccine (1st dose) Pneumococcal vaccine (2nd dose) MenB vaccine (3rd dose)
2 to 15 years	Children’s flu vaccine (every year until children finish Year 11 of secondary school)
3 years and 4 months	MMR vaccine (2nd dose) 4-in-1 pre-school booster vaccine
12 to 13 years	HPV vaccine
14 years	Td/IPV vaccine (3-in-1 teenage booster) MenACWY vaccine

How we support people with diabetes.

There are a number of services that can help you when it comes to looking after yourself if you have diabetes.

Routine care

The majority of people with diabetes are looked after by the practice diabetes team.

We like to see all people with diabetes twice a year, once during their annual health check and again 6 months later.

You will receive an invite for both the annual health check and the 6 month review. Both of the appointments will be a nurse and you will need to have a blood test before each appointment.

There are times when you will need to be seen more often than twice a year, for example after you are first diagnosed or if problems are detected during one of the routine reviews. We arrange these additional reviews as needed and may be a nurse or one of the Doctors.

The practice team

The diabetes lead for the practice is Sr Jill Stocks and Sr Jacqui Cryer.

Specialist care

If there is a particular problem identified with your diabetes care that we cannot help you within the practice, then we will refer you to a specialist service.

For the majority of specialist problems we use Leeds Community Healthcare diabetes service, though for some people we also refer to Wharfedale General Hospital or St. James’s.

Self help and support groups

There are 8,760 hours in a year and over a year you will only spend 2 to 3 hours receiving support and advice about your diabetes from professionals. The vast majority of care comes from ‘self care’.

We suggest that all people who develop diabetes should attend the self-management education programme, which is 6 hours of extra education offered to those with a new diagnosis of diabetes (your nurse will mention it).

There is also a local PEP Diabetes support group as we recognise people live with diabetes for years and so need on-going support and advice.

National diabetes audit

This GP practice is taking part in the National Diabetes Audit which is an important national project about diabetes care and treatment in the NHS

This GP practice is taking part in an important national project about diabetes care and treatment in the NHS. The project is called the National Diabetes Audit (NDA).

To take part, your GP practice will share information about your diabetes care and treatment with the NDA. The type of information, and how it is shared, is controlled by law and enforced by strict rules of confidentiality and security.

For further information about how your information is used please see the NDA patient information leaflet. Taking part in the NDA shows that this GP practice is committed to improving care for people with diabetes.

If you do not want your information to be used, please inform the receptionist, your GP or nurse. This will not affect your care.

Protect yourself from flu Contents

1. What is flu?
2. How do we prevent the spread of flu?
3. Can I have a free flu vaccination on the NHS?
4. Flu Clinic

What is flu?

Flu occurs every year, usually in the winter, which is why it is sometimes called seasonal flu. It is a very infectious disease that can come on very quickly. The most common symptoms of flu are fever, chills, cough, headache, pains in your joints and muscles and extreme tiredness. Healthy people usually recover within 3 to 4 weeks, but some people can develop serious life-threatening complications and need to be admitted to hospital.

Colds are much less serious and usually start with a stuffy or a runny nose, sore throat and cough.

How do we prevent the spread of flu?

Flu is unpredictable and there can be different strains of the virus. However, over the last ten years, the flu vaccine has generally been very good at targeting the circulating strains.
The flu vaccine is available every year on the NHS to help protect adults and children who are most at risk of flu and its complications.

Can I have a free flu vaccination on the NHS?

Flu can affect anyone but if you have a long-term health condition flu can make it worse, even if the condition is well managed and you normally feel well.

We provide flu vaccines if you are:

• Aged 65 or over,
• Pregnant,
• Aged 2, 3 or 4 (by nasal spray),
• Over six months of age and have one of the following conditions:
  • Chronic respiratory disease, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), chronic bronchitis and cystic fibrosis. Also, people with severe asthma who need to continuously or repeatedly use their inhaler, take steroid medication, or who have been admitted to hospital because of their asthma
  • Chronic heart disease, including heart failure, congenital heart disease, and heart disease caused by high blood pressure
  • Chronic kidney disease, such as kidney failure and people who have had a kidney transplant,
  • Chronic liver disease, such as cirrhosis and chronic hepatitis,
  • Chronic neurological diseases, such as stroke, Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, motor neurone disease or multiple sclerosis,
  • Diabetes
  • A suppressed immune system, due to disease or treatment. This includes people who have a damaged or no spleen, those people with HIV, people having chemotherapy or other immunosuppressant treatment, and those on high doses of steroid medication.
• Very overweight with a BMI over 40.
• Living in a long-stay residential care home or other long-stay care facility (not including prisons, young offender institutions or university halls of residence),
• Receive carer’s allowance or you are the main carer for an elderly or disabled person whose welfare may be at risk if you fall ill,

For more information please see the Department of Health Website.

Flu Clinic

Every autumn, around September, we start our flu clinics. We aim to vaccinate as many of those at risk, as indicated above.

You can book online if you are registered for online services, or call reception to make an appointment.

Keep an eye out under the news section of this website for when the clinics start.

Some things are not covered by the NHS – find out more Contents

1. Private Medical Services
2. Private Medical Reports
3. Frequently asked questions
4. Why can it take a long time to complete a form?
5. How do I request a non-NHS service?
6. Do I have to pay to get a copy of my medical records?

Private Medical Services

You may have to pay a fee for certain services that are not covered by the NHS. These fees reflect the time it takes for the doctor to look at your medical records and some admin time.

Services include things like private health certificates, insurance claim forms, HGV/taxi medicals and some travel vaccinations.

This is our current list of Non-NHS fees:

C
Childminder	Health forms	£ 87.50
Copies of Records	Copy of notes held on computer	£ 15.00
	Copy of Manual notes/Computer	£ 50.00
D
Driving Licensing	Full medical & Report	£187.00
	HGV/PSV/Taxi	£100.00
	Report	£ 89.50
E
Employment	Full medical & Report	£187.00
	Report (No Exam)	£133.00
	Report (Proforma)	£ 89.50
	Army Medicals	£ 65.00
F
Fitness	Fly/Sport etc Simple Certificate	£ 30.00
	Dependent on length & complexity	£ 63.00
H
Holiday	Letter or Simple Certificate	£ 50.00
I
Infection	Freedom from Infection	£ 30.00
P
Private	Sick note	£ 30.00
	Prescription	£ 17.00
Power of Attorney	POA or Assessment of Capacity	£150.00
Private Health Claim	BUPA ETC	£30-£63
S
STUDENT	Camp America –exam	£ 60.00
	Fit for Sport	£ 30.00
	Fit for Sport –exam	£60.00
	Min fee for Letter/Simple report	£18.00
T
Travel	Fitness to Travel –full exam & report	£187.00
	Report –no exam	£133.00
	Report –no examination	£133.00
	Report – on proforma	£ 89.50
	Extract from records	£ 67.00

More information about why we charge can be found on the BMA website.

Private Medical Reports

There are also times when we are asked for information about a patient’s health, such as when you are applying for a mortgage or life insurance. We only do this with your permission and you have the right to see the report before it is sent. To avoid any delays, please make sure you sign the consent form that the company gives you. You do not need to contact us in order to chase a medical report, as the secretary will deal with the company directly.

Frequently asked questions

Why can it take a long time to complete a form?

Time spent completing forms and preparing reports takes the GP away from the medical care of his or her patients. Most GPs have a very heavy NHS workload and this paperwork is done in around the patient care.

When a doctor signs a certificate or completes a report, it is a condition of remaining on the Medical Register that they only sign what they know to be true.

In order to complete even the simplest of forms, therefore, the doctor might have to check the patient’s entire medical record. Carelessness, or an inaccurate report, can have serious consequences for the doctor.

How do I request a non-NHS service?

We must receive requests in writing. There is a form on the reception desk which you should fill in, stating what type of service you require, your details, and obtaining your signature to show you understand that there is a charge for the service being provided.

If you require a letter from your GP, you may discuss your request with them in a face-to-face appointment. They will advise you if they are happy to complete your request.

If you have any queries about a service that you might require, you can contact the surgery through the usual routes and we will be happy to provide you with the relevant information/

Do I have to pay to get a copy of my medical records?

Under the new GDPR regulations introduced in 2018, you are entitled to access to your medical records for free.

Please note that, using the GP online services, you can access a lot of your medical record on your computer or mobile device if you have an account.

If you require a partial or full copy of your medical records, you should put your request in writing stating what information you require. The turnaround time to complete the request can be up to 30 days, as per regulations.

Information for carers and the help we provide.

Who is a carer?

Many carers are not known by their GP practice as there is confusion around how to define the term ‘carer’.

A carer is a person of any age (including children) who provides unpaid support to a partner, relative, friend or neighbour who couldn’t get by without their help. This could be due to old age, frailty, disability, a serious health condition, mental ill health or substance misuse. Parents of children who are disabled or who have a serious health condition are also considered to be carers.

It is estimated that 10% of patients are carers.

Improving carer identification

As a practice, we want to increase the number of people on our carers’ register so that we can look after you better. We do this by:

• Asking patients with long-term conditions to name their carers
• Running awareness-raising campaigns to get carers to tell us about their caring responsibilities

What we offer to improve healthcare for carers

• Flu vaccination – most carers are eligible for a free flu vaccination to protect themselves and the person they care for
• Regular health check appointments to help you keep fit and well
• More flexible appointments
• Carer support groups
• Referrals to carers’ services for more specialised information, advice and support

Dedicated services for carers

If you care for someone and would like additional support then the following services may help

• Carers Leeds
• Carers Trust
• The Carents Room – Help for adults caring for elderly parents

Online

For general advice about bereavement, you might find the NHS website on bereavement useful.

If you are looking for advice about dealing with the practical aspects (such as legal issues) of someone dying, then try the Bereavement Advice Centre.

The Leeds Bereavement Forum collates allot of information on the services available in Leeds.

In person

There are also several organisations and charities that provide specialist advice and support to those that have been bereaved:

• Cruse (bereavement care in Leeds area)
• Home – The Good Grief Trust
• Sands (stillbirth and neonatal death charity)
• The Compassionate Friends
• Leeds Suicide Bereavement Service
• Child Bereavement UK
• Winston’s Wish (for bereaved children)

Advocacy means helping another person to communicate their views and wishes.

GPs often act as advocates for patients when dealing with issues in the hospital or by making sure that their patients’ and/or families’ voices are heard when a decision is needed about their care.

Advocacy involves looking at choices together and helping patients to make decisions. It may be writing a letter of support or communicating on behalf of the patient.

When advocates who are not part of social services or the NHS are needed, they can be found in Leeds at:

• Advonet
• Articulate Advocacy CIC
• Leeds Independent Health Complaints Advocacy