Practice Policies

Practice Policies

GP net earnings 2020/2021

All GP practices are required to declare the mean earnings (e.g. average pay) for GPs working to deliver NHS services to patients at each practice.

The average pay for GPs working in Watercress Medical in the last financial year was £63,779 before tax and National Insurance. This is for 1 full time GP and 7 part time GPs who worked in the practice for more than six months

The protection and use of patient information

Everyone working for the NHS has a legal duty to keep information about you confidential.

From time to time, we may share some of your records with other healthcare professionals. This might to ensure that you get the right treatment from emergency, out-of-hours and out-patient services or to help us to plan the service we offer to all NHS patients. There are strict rules which we have to follow when sharing your information. Go here to find out more >>

Infection Control Annual Statement

This annual statement will be generated each year in February in accordance with the requirements of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 Code of Practice on the prevention and control of infections and related guidance. It summarises any infection transmission incidents and any action taken and details any infection control audits undertaken

Click here to down load the full statement for August 2022>>

Our responsibilities to you

People involved in your care will give you their names. The reception staff and nursing staff wear name badges. The surgery is well sign posted.

You will be given a time at which the doctor or nurse hopes to see you. You should not wait more than 30 minutes without receiving an explanation for the delay.

You will have access to a doctor rapidly in the case of an emergency. You will be offered an urgent appointment on the day of request, if appropriate. Please be prepared to wait when you are offered an urgent slot.

We will try to answer the phone promptly and to ensure that there are sufficient staff available to do this. You should be able to speak to a doctor on the telephone, but please check with reception when is the most appropriate time to ring.

If you need to ring the surgery to check the results of tests or X-rays ordered by the surgery, please ring after 11.00am, otherwise we will inform you of the results at your next appointment.

Patients will be treated as individuals and partners in their healthcare irrespective of their ethnic origin or religious and cultural beliefs.

We will give you full information about the services we offer. Every effort will be made to ensure that you receive any information which affects your health and the care being offered.

Please do not ask for or arrange a specialist appointment without first discussing the matter fully with your own doctor.

The practice will offer advice and information on steps you can take to promote your own health and avoid illness.

You have the right to see your records, subject to any limitations in the law. These will be kept confidential at all times.

We also believe that we have the right to bring it to your attention if we feel that you have in some way misused the services we offer.

Your responsibilities to us

Please let us know if you change your name address or telephone number.

Please do everything you can to keep appointments, tell us as soon as possible if you cannot attend, otherwise other patients may have to wait longer. Please ask for more than one appointment if you want more than one patient seen.

We need your help too. Please ask for home visits only when the patient is too ill to visit the surgery. A doctor can see up to 6 patients in the surgery in the time it takes to do a home visit. Children can always be brought to the surgery.

Please keep your phone calls brief and please avoid calling during peak morning time (8.00 am to 11.30am) for non-urgent matters.

Test results take time to reach us, please do not ring before you have been asked to do so. Enquiries about tests ordered by the hospital should be directed to the hospital not the practice.

We ask that you please treat the doctors and all of the practice staff with the same courtesy and respect. We have procedures to follow for aggressive/ violent patients.

Please read our practice booklet. This will help you get the best out of the service we offer. It is important that you understand the information given to you. Please ask if you are unsure of anything.

If after receiving a hospital appointment, you decide that you no longer need this, please inform both the hospital consultant and the Surgery.

Remember, you are responsible for your own health and the health of your children. We are here to give you our professional help and advice.

Please make an appointment with your doctor if you wish to see them. Staying with one doctor for a particular illness helps continuity and improves the quality of your care.

We welcome constructive comments and feedback on our services.