faqs

Fit Notes

All patients taking time off work due to illness will need to self-certify for the first 7 days of their illness. Many employers have their own self-certification forms, but if your employer doesn’t have its own form you can refer to GOV.UK  or download this PDF form. You do not need a doctor to fill out the self-certification form.

Fit Notes will only be provided by a GP after the 7th day of your illness. You will need to have a consultation with a GP before they can provide a Fit Note, but they are able to backdate it by a few days if this is required. You can return to work before the assigned end date of your fit note if you feel better, but you must discuss this with your employer.

Please be advised that we are currently sending Fit Notes to patients via email due to ongoing Coronavirus restrictions.

For more guidance about Fit Notes please refer to the GOV.UK website.

Car parking

We offer free car parking to all our patients and visitors. Please register your car details with the reception staff on arrival.

Patient responsibilities

You are partners in the care you receive and we ask you to accept your own responsibilities in return.

  • Please treat your surgery staff with due courtesy and respect. At Bellevue Group Practice we operate a policy of zero-tolerance of patients who are violent, threatening, or abusive, whether in person, over the telephone or online. We may take action to have these patients removed from the practice list, or referred to the police if appropriate.
  • If you need a home visit, if possible please telephone before 10.30am. Transportation problems are not a valid reason for a home visit.
  • Only ask for emergency consultations or home visits when appropriate.
  • To help keep surgeries running as smoothly as possible please arrive on time for your appointment. Let us know as soon as you can if you cannot keep an appointment.

For further information, please refer to our Patient Behaviour Policy

Change of address

Please inform the practice immediately if you change your address or telephone number to enable us to keep our records up to date. You will need to fill in a change of address form, either by picking one up at reception or by downloading it here.

You can then either email the completed form to Bellevue.Enquiries@wales.nhs.uk or print it yourself and hand in to reception.

If your new address is outside our catchment area, you will need to find a new GP surgery. You can find a directory of GP surgeries within the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board here.

Bellevue Group Practice leaflet

If you want an up to date copy of our Patient Information Leaflet, which contains the information found on this website, please ask at either Bellevue Surgery or Bettws Health Centre.

Alternatively you can download a copy here.

Access Standards

Aneurin Bevan University Health Board

ACCESS STANDARDS

 

A new set of standards were announced by the Minister for Health and Social Services in March 2019 that are aimed to raise and improve the level of service for patients in Wales from their GP practices.

These standards are set out below;

 

  • People receive a prompt response to their contact with a GP practice via telephone.
  • Practices have the appropriate telephony systems in place to support the needs of people avoiding the need to call back multiple times and will check that they are handling calls in this way.
  • People receive bilingual information on local and emergency services when contacting a practice.
  • People are able to access information on how to get help and advice.
  • People receive the right care at the right time in a joined up way which is based on their needs.
  • People can use a range of options to contact their GP practice.
  • People are able to email a practice to request a non-urgent consultation or a call back.
  • Practices understand the needs of people within their practice and use this information to anticipate the demand on its services.

 

Aneurin Bevan University Health Board will be supporting your GP practice to ensure these standards are achieved.

Recorded consultation information for patients

Recorded consultation information for patients

If you are reading this, you’ve probably had a phone or video call with a GP where you were asked for permission for the call to be recorded. Hopefully this page answers any questions you might have.

Why would the doctor want a recording of the call?

The GP you spoke to is required to submit recordings of 13 consultations as part of an exam called the Recorded Consultation Assessment. This is an important exam that the doctor has to undertake in the final stage of their training as a GP. The doctor might also want to get feedback from their supervisor about the consultation, and identify opportunities for improvement.

Do I have to consent to recording to have the consultation?

No, it’s completely up to you and the care you receive will not be affected by your decision.

If you are having a video consultation with your doctor then our system will continue regardless of whether you consent to recording or not. If you are having a phone call consultation and you opt not to have the consultation recorded, then you will be asked to hang up so the doctor can call you back.

What if I change my mind and want the recording deleted?

Yes. If you consented to have the call recorded and then want change your mind, that’s absolutely fine. The recording can be deleted at any time.

If you had a video call with the doctor, you’ll be given a chance to change your mind about recording immediately after the call. If you decide to change your mind at a later date, please contact your GP Practice and let them know that you want the recording to be deleted.

If you had a phone call with the doctor and you want the recording to be deleted, please contact your GP Practice and the doctor will be able to delete the recording.

Who can access the recording?

Everyone who might view or listen to the recording is either a GP or a GP Examiner. The following people will have access to the recording…
•The doctor you had the consultation with.
•The doctor’s supervisor (who is also a GP), if the doctor chooses to share it with them.
•Two examiners (GPs or GP Examiners) who have been employed by the Royal College of General Practitioners as assessors for the Recorded Consultation Assessment, if the doctor submits the consultation for their exam.
•In rare cases, additional examiners if there is a requirement for additional assessment of the consultation.
•Occasionally Trainee Programme Directors and Educationalists supporting the GP may need to view the consultation for teaching purposes.

How will the recording be stored?

The recordings are securely encrypted and stored on servers located in the UK and Ireland. We use AES-256 encryption which is one of the strongest mechanisms available.

We ensure that all data to and from our system is encrypted using TLS 1.2 which prevents anyone reading or tampering with the data while it is in transit. We have procedures and security features in place to keep your data secure once we receive it.

FourteenFish is ISO 27001 certified and audited by the British Assessment Bureau on an annual basis. This means that someone impartial and outside of our organisation evaluates our security management procedures.

All recording recordings will be deleted after 6 months at the latest. If the doctor uses the recording in their exam, then the recording will be deleted once it has been assessed.

Any questions?

Please contact us and we will be able to help.

Who should have the flu vaccine?

For most people, flu is an unpleasant illness, but it’s not serious. If you are otherwise healthy, you will usually recover from flu within a week.

However, certain people are more likely to develop potentially serious complications of flu, such as bronchitis and pneumonia. These people are advised to have a flu jab each year.

People who should have a flu vaccine

The injected flu vaccine is offered free of charge on the NHS to people who are at risk. This is to ensure they are protected against catching flu and developing serious complications.

You are eligible to receive a free flu vaccine if you:
are 65 years of age or over (includes people who will be 65 before 31st March 2018)
are pregnant
have certain medical conditions
are very overweight (BMI of 40 and over)
are living in a long-stay residential care home or other long-stay care facility
receive a 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
are a healthcare worker with direct patient contact, or a social care worker
Children over 6mths who have a long term medical condition, children 2-3 yrs old and also children in reception class or years 1,2 and 3.
Over-65s and the flu vaccine
You are eligible for the flu vaccine this year (2017-18) if you are aged 65 and over on March 31 2018 – that is, you were born on or before March 31 1953. So, if you are currently 64 but will be 65 on March 31 2018, you do qualify.
Pregnant women and the flu vaccine
If you’re pregnant, you’re advised to have the injectable flu vaccine, regardless of the stage of pregnancy you’ve reached.

That’s because there’s strong evidence to suggest pregnant women have an increased risk of developing complications if they get flu.

If you’re pregnant, you will benefit from the flu vaccine because:
it reduces your chance of getting serious complications of flu, such as pneumonia, particularly in the later stages of pregnancy
it reduces your risk of having a miscarriage, or your baby being born prematurely or with a low birth weight because of the flu
it will help protect your baby as they will continue to have some immunity to flu for the first few months of their life
It’s safe to have the flu vaccine at any stage of pregnancy from conception onwards. The vaccine doesn’t carry any risks for you or your baby. Talk to your GP or midwife if you are unsure about the vaccination.

Read more about the flu vaccine in pregnancy.
Flu vaccine for people with medical conditions
The injected flu vaccine is offered free of charge on the NHS to people with serious long-term health conditions. That includes these types of illnesses:
chronic (long-term) respiratory diseases, such as asthma (which requires an inhaled or tablet steroid treatment, or has led to hospital admission in the past), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), or bronchitis
chronic heart disease, such as heart failure
chronic kidney disease
chronic liver disease, such as hepatitis
chronic neurological conditions, such as Parkinson’s disease or motor neurone disease
diabetes
problems with your spleen – for example, sickle cell disease or if you have had your spleen removed
a weakened immune system as the result of conditions such as HIV and AIDS, or medication such as steroid tablets or chemotherapy
This list of conditions isn’t definitive. It’s always an issue of clinical judgement.

Your GP can assess you individually to take into account the risk of flu exacerbating any underlying illness you may have, as well as your risk of serious illness from flu itself.

If you live with someone who has a weakened immune system, you may also be advised to have a flu vaccine. Speak to your GP or pharmacist about this.
Flu vaccine if you’re very overweight
The injected flu vaccine is recommended for anyone who is severely overweight with a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or more.

Read more about BMI and how to check it.
Flu vaccine for children
The flu vaccine is recommended for:
children over the age of six months with a long-term health condition
children aged two and three plus children in reception class, year one, year two and year three in primary school.
Children aged between six months and two years of age who are eligible for the flu vaccine should have the flu jab.

Children eligible for the flu vaccine aged between two and 17 will usually have the flu vaccine nasal spray.

Read about who should have the children’s flu vaccine.
Flu vaccine for health and social care workers
Outbreaks of flu can occur in health and social care settings, and, because flu is so contagious, staff, patients and residents are all at risk of infection.

If you’re a front-line health and social care worker, you are eligible for an NHS flu vaccine to protect yourself, your colleagues and other members of the community.

It is your employer’s responsibility to arrange vaccination for you. So, if you are an NHS-employed front-line healthcare worker, the NHS will pay for your vaccination. If you are a social care worker, your employer – for example, your local authority – will pay for vaccination.

In the case of health and social care workers employed by private companies, those companies will arrange and pay for the vaccinations.
Flu vaccine for carers
If you care for someone who is elderly or disabled, speak to your GP about having a flu vaccine.

Read more about the flu vaccine for carers on the Carers UK website.

Further links