News

Non-urgent advice: Friends of Park Surgery Coffee Morning - Saturday 14th June

Would you like to join us for coffee and cake on Saturday 14th June 2024 between 10 am and 12 noon?

The coffee morning is for Park patients and will be held in the Methodist Hall, London Road. Some of the practice staff will be there and representatives from several local organisations, including Horsham U3A (University of Third Age), Tapestry Day Club, Olive Tree Cancer Support, Community Links. There will be a short talk on managing long term conditions at around 10:45 too!

If you would like to come please let us know. You can do this by emailing: friends.ofparksurgery@outlook.com with your name and the number of people coming with you. Alternatively, you can pop along any time.

Further, the Friends of Park Surgery newsletter is now available! Click here or on the next picture to view it.

For more information about Friends of Park Surgery please click here.

Non-urgent advice: Local Phlebotomy Service Update

Introducing an online booking system

East Surrey Hospital, Crawley Hospital, and Horsham Hospital are changing the way they accept blood test appointments.

The aim is to improve the efficiency of the service reducing waiting times and enhancing patient experience.

How do i book a blood test appointment?

Please visit www.swiftqueue.com to book your appointment. This requires a log in.

If you are unable to use the onling system, you can still book an appointment by calling 0300 613 4117 Monday to Friday, between 8am and 8pm.

If you have additional requirements such as a phobia of needles, please add a note during the booking process.

Appointments can be made by family members to support those who are unable to use the online service themselves.

When does this change happen?

East Surrey Hospital - 10th March 2025

Crawley & Horsham Hospital - 1st April 2025

Walk-in appointments will be available until 31st March 2025.

Non-urgent advice: GP Triage System Changes

Important Update from Park Surgery

We want to let you know about some important changes happening at Park Surgery from Tuesday 25^th February 2025. We want to provide you with the best care possible and improve access to our service. These changes will help us to do that.

New GP Triage System for Same-Day Urgent Issues

From Tuesday 25^th February 2025, we’ll be introducing a GP triage system for urgent, on-the-day medical problems. Here’s how it will work:

When you contact us for an urgent, same-day appointment, our reception team will ask for some brief details about your problem.
You’ll then be added to a triage list for the GP.
The GP will review your case to decide how quickly you need to be seen and who the best person is to help you.
We’ll contact you to book the appropriate appointment or provide guidance.

Please give the receptionist as much information as you can when asked. Receptionists are not making clinical decisions; they are simply passing your details to the GP so they can assess your needs properly.

New App for Easier Contact

We’re also launching a new patient app, to give you more ways to contact us without needing to phone or visit the surgery. Through the app, you’ll be able to:

Ask administrative questions
Order repeat prescriptions
View your medical record
Submit an Online Consultation about medical issues (both urgent and routine)

Online consultations will also be triaged by the GP, who will advise on the next steps or signpost you to the right service.

Details about how to download and use the app will be shared gradually. Please wait for a text invite or check the posters in the surgery. A link will also be available on our website starting Tuesday 25^th February 2025.

Website Changes

We’re updating our website to support these changes too.

We’re excited about these changes, which are designed to improve access to care and ensure that we continue to provide safe, high-quality support for all our patients. These updates will help us prioritise urgent issues effectively and make the best use of our resources. We’d like to thank you for your patience and understanding as we implement these improvements, especially during these challenging times for the NHS.

Urgent advice: New Patient App - live at Park Surgery!

Online Services – faster, easier access to your GP practice

To provide you with an upgraded experience for requesting help from the practice and taking control of your health, we are launching our new patient app - Dr.iQ powered by Evergreen. This means you can now access your GP services and request help from the practice via the Evergreen Life app.

What is Dr.iQ, powered by Evergreen?

The new app brings all your health information, GP records and services into one place.

With the Evergreen Life app, you can:

Order repeat prescriptions easily
Access your GP records and results
Request help from your GP surgery
Get insights on how to be as happy and healthy as possible

Please make sure that you only use the links or QR codes on this page to download the Evergreen Life app if you are registered at The Park Surgery.

How do I access the app?

1. Click here to download the app on your mobile device or scan the QR code below

2. Create an Evergreen Life account

3. Link to your GP securely with NHS login to access your GP services

4. Tap ‘Request help from GP’ to get support from a clinician

If you’re unable to download the app or don’t want to use online services, please contact the practice directly by phone to make a request.

Getting started on the Evergreen app

Why use the app?

Quick response time – around 80% of requests are completed on the same day.
Easy for everyone – get a prompt response as a parent, carer, or patient.
Help with any problem – request help for medical problems, advice, test results, and administration queries.
Get help from home – avoid unnecessary visits to the practice and fit healthcare in around your lifestyle
Choose how you want to communicate – call, face-to-face, or message – it’s up to you!
Access NHS-assured GP services – order repeat prescriptions easily and access your medical records and results.

Secure communication – your medical details remain confidential to you and your GP.

Carers Rights Day

It is Carers Rights Day on the 21st November.

With the aim of raising awareness of the challenges experienced by carers and to empower them with the information and support they may need.

It is crucial for carers to understand their rights and how they can access the support available. Therefore, we are taking the opportunity to raise awareness of the challenges faced by unpaid carers.

Our TV screens have a short video to try and raise awareness and we welcome all those who are not sure to reach out and discuss the options open to carers.

Our staff are able to signpost any carers to the appropriate support.

Ask yourself, 'Do you help to look after a family member or friend who would struggle without your support because of their illness, frailty, disability, mental health problem or addiction?'

If so, you are a carer and there is support available for you.

Non-urgent advice: UPDATE: A New Future for Park Surgery

As you may be aware, GP practices across the country have been facing a number of challenges over recent years, and this is true for the team here at Park Surgery. We are committed to providing the best possible care for our patients. In order to improve our services and safeguard the surgery for our patients now and for the next generations of local people, the partners realised some time ago that we needed to find new ways of working to secure the future of our surgery.

Over the past 18 months, we have been exploring opportunities to support the surgery so that we can continue to provide high quality NHS services for our patients for the long-term.

To ensure that we can do this, and after much research and consideration, in the coming weeks, we will be entering into a partnership with Operose Health. Our priority is to continue to provide the highest quality care for our patients and a supportive workplace for our valued staff. We believe this partnership will deliver this and enable us to make further improvements and ensure our patients can receive the care they need.

Please note, that you do not need to take any action and there will be no changes to the way you contact or access the surgery. You will remain a registered patient of Park Surgery and you will continue to see the same doctors, nurses and admin team members that you do now. You do not need to re-register with the surgery or register at another GP surgery.

Ultimately, we want to make sure that our GP surgery has a future, and that we can continue to care for our patients in the way that they deserve to be cared for. Without finding new ways of working, the future would have been uncertain.

The partnership will see Operose Health supporting us with the back-office functions and management systems of the surgery whilst we, the partners, continue as GPs and clinical leads.

Operose Health has established and experienced teams of HR, IT, governance and health and safety experts who will help to provide the more ‘behind the scenes’ functions, freeing up the team of GPs and healthcare professionals that you already know, to spend more time with patients. In addition, they will also bring in new technology, which will help the practice to run more smoothly and give patients even more ways to contact and engage with practice staff.

We would also like to offer our thanks to the dedicated members of our Patient Participation Group (PPG), for all their input and feedback.

We appreciate this change may be unsettling, but we are delighted to have secured a positive future for our surgery which allows us to continue to serve our patients and community.

Thank you for your continued understanding and support.

For any questions, please see the FAQ

The Partners

Friends of Park Surgery Coffee Morning - September 2024

Would you like to join us for coffee and cake on Saturday 28th September 2024 between 10 am and 12 noon?

The coffee morning is for Park patients and will be held in the Methodist Hall, London Road. Some of the practice staff will be there and representatives from several local organisations, including Horsham Wellbeing, Community Links, Age UK, Good Neighbours, Health & Independent Living Support and Oliver Tree Cancer Support.

If you would like to come please let us know so we can make sure there is space for you. You can do this by emailing: friends.ofparksurgery@outlook.com with your name and the number of people coming with you.

Further, the Friends of Park Surgery newsletter is now available! Click here or on the next picture to view it.

For more information about Friends of Park Surgery please click here.

Friends of Park Surgery Coffee Morning - April 2024

Would you like to join us for coffee and cake on Saturday 27th April 2024 between 10 am and 12 noon?

The coffee morning is for Park patients and will be in the Methodist Hall, London Road. Some of the practice staff will be there and representatives from several local organisations, including Age UK, Community Link, Horsham Carers Support Group, the Community Fridge, RVS and Social Prescribers from the PCN.

If you would like to come please let us know so we can make sure there is space for you. You can do this by emailing: friends.ofparksurgery@nhs.net with your name and the number of people coming with you.

FOPS needs a new Secretary

An exciting opportunity to join the Friends of Park Surgery and have your voice heard:

FOPS needs a new Secretary

Can you spare a few hours every couple of months to help with the Friends of Park Surgery? Due to other commitments our Secretary has had to stand down. The role would initially involve sending out agendas and taking minutes, but could evolve to include more. If you might be interested, please contact us friends.ofparksurgery@nhs.net with your telephone number and our Chair will ring you to explain more of what is involved.

Thank you

Letter to Patients

Implementation of the British Medical Association's Safe Working Guidance

We are writing to let you know that Park Surgery has implemented the BMA’s Safe Working Guidance over the last few months. This will mean the number of patient contacts each General Practitioner will complete over a working day will be capped at 25.

The practice will also be introducing an average 15-minute appointment schedule, based on each individual patients’ clinical needs. These changes are designed to create a safer environment for you, our patients, who are our priority, and also for all our clinical teams.

Recent surveys have shown GPs across the nation are facing an unmanageable workload, which at times is affecting their ability to provide safe care. General Practitioners are also retiring early, reducing their NHS commitments, or deciding to leave the profession. This is an unsustainable situation which must be addressed, and the BMA’s Safe Working Guidance is designed to help both you, as a patient, to receive better care, and your GP to provide it.

You will also continue to receive care from other clinical colleagues working at the practice. You may also be asked, depending on your medical symptoms, to contact NHS 111 or attend other local NHS services.

Kind regards,

David Holwell

Senior Partner