The practices of the A31 Primary Care Network are pleased to announce that from June 10^th there will be additional Saturday appointments in the Alton & Four Marks area available for our patients to book.

These appointments will be run on our behalf by Mid Hants Healthcare and held at Chawton Park Surgery on behalf of the registered patients of The Wilson Practice, Chawton Park Surgery and Boundaries Surgery. This will be a local service provided for our patients and delivered within Alton and you may recognise some of the team members from your usual practices!

The new service will offer a wider range of services for our Alton and Four Marks population than currently offered on a Saturday and run between 09:00 – 17:00.  Please check our A31 PCN Facebook page and your practice websites for more information as the service develops.

To book an appointment please contact your Practice as usual.  Appointments will be available for booking from 1 June 2023.

We have been informed that Four Marks Pharmacy is not currently opening on a Saturday.  With this in mind, we would like to remind you that we will still only be able to process prescriptions within our current service levels of 3 clear working days.  We can redirect your prescription to another pharmacy if you wish, otherwise please be aware that we are still under winter pressures, and we are not responsible for situations beyond our control.

Due to the current exceptionally high demand, we have made the difficult decision to suspend our eConsukt service until the New Year.  Therefore we request you call us ONLY if you need urgent help and cannot wait until January.

We urge all patients to make sure they have tried all self help options, over-the-counter remedies and got advice from their local pharmacist before contacting us, especially for cold and flu type virus symptoms.
We hope to resume normal services in the New Year and apologise for the inconvenience this will cause patients.
Please be kind to our staff who are doing their very best to help you.
If you no longer need a booked appointment, please cancel using the text back option when you receive your text reminder.
Thank you for your patience during this very busy time.

STREP A / Scarlett Fever update - Last updated 15/12/2022

On top of our normal high winter workload, we, like every other practice nationally, are seeing a large number of calls related to concerns around strep A and scarlet fever, following reports that there has been an increase of cases. While most children will only have a mild illness, some may become seriously unwell, so if you are concerned about your child, please seek medical help.

You can get more information on what to look out for and when to seek medical help on the Healthier Together website: https://what0-18.nhs.uk/parentscarers/worried-your-child-unwell/scarlet-fever or by watching this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJ6E8WAnbHM

We are doing our best to ensure patients who need to be dealt with on the same day by a GP can be. We may not have capacity to see everyone and understand that delays getting through can be frustrating. We apologise for longer than usual waits to speak to our reception team.

After discussion with the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board, we have made the difficult decision, along with many other local practices, that we may need to temporarily delay routine GP appointments to ensure urgent cases can be seen quickly. This will be done according to clinical need, and we will do what we can to reduce disruption. This does not affect nurses appointments at this time.

If you are unable to attend an appointment or need to rearrange, please let us know as soon as possible, so that we can offer it to others.

Please be patient with us and if your reason for contacting us isn’t urgent please consider getting back in touch on another day. If you can have your request dealt with online such as repeat prescription requests, general queries or fit to work certificates, please visit our website 

Parents or guardians of children can also download the Healthier Together App for free onto their smartphone or through the website for instant advice on many common conditions: www.what0-18.nhs.uk/

Your local pharmacy can help with some minor ailments such as the common cold, upset stomach, or aches and pains. However, if you are getting worse or things change you can visit NHS 111 online, find your nearest Urgent Treatment Centre, or in an emergency, dial 999 or visit the emergency department.

Thank you for your understanding.

Phio

You can refer yourself to the musculoskeletal (MSK) service without having to see a GP, using Phio, a state-of-the-art digital assessment tool which is accessible, online, 24/7 (you must have access to a mobile phone to proceed with this).  Phio will take you through a series of questions, and will generate a referral to the MSK service where appropriate*.  After this is reviewed, you will be offered an appointment with the most appropriate service, such as telephone or face-to-face physiotherapy, or you may be invited for further assessment of your problem.

To get started with your assessment click the Phio link above.

*The majority of MSK problems can be self-referred, but some may require further assessment before a referral is appropriate, so you may be directed to see another healthcare professional first.