The NHS app

If you’re a patient at our practice, you can use the NHS App to access a range of NHS services on your smartphone or tablet.

It doesn’t replace existing services. 

You can still contact us in the usual ways. But, once you have verified your identity in the app, you will have easy, 24/7 access to a growing range of health services and information.

Advice and information:

  • search symptoms, conditions, and treatments 
  • get health advice through 111 online 
  • find NHS services near you 
  • check your NHS number

Appointments:

  • book and cancel appointments 
  • check your referrals and hospital appointments 
  • manage vaccinations 

Prescriptions:

  • nominate a pharmacy and order repeat prescriptions  

Manage your health: (Please note you might need to request access codes from us first for this feature)

  • access your GP health record securely 
  • register your organ donation decision 
  • take part in health research  

Send and receive messages: (Please note you will only able to receive messages currently)

  • send an online form about your symptoms, conditions, or treatment directly to the surgery  
  • receive messages and notifications 
  • view messages from your GP surgery and get notifications through your phone or tablet 

Help someone else: (Please note you will need to fill in a Proxy Access form from our practice first)

  • link profiles. You can apply to access the health records, appointments and prescriptions of people you care for (including children) – or get help from someone you trust 

If you already use Patient Access for example, you can continue to use it. But the NHS App will give you easy and secure access on your smartphone.  

If you have any problems using the NHS App, you can select ‘help’ in the top right-hand corner of the app or visit nhs.uk/helpmeapp.

New Patient Newsletter Coming Soon

We will be launching our new patient newsletter quarterly on our website, starting at the end of August. Our newsletter will feature news updates about the practice, including important dates, changes to the business and more. It will also include useful information about external services, campaigns and events in the area, helpful advice regarding medication and pharmacies, how-to digital advice and updates, general health tips and seasonal health advice, PPG news, PCN news, patient stories and reviews, and directories for a broad spectrum of services available to you.

10 Healthy New Year’s Resolutions

1. Get Active

It’s the perfect time to get active. No matter how much you do, physical activity is good for your body and mind. Adults should aim to be active every day. Some is good – more is better still.

A daily brisk walk can give your body a boost, lift your mood and make everyday activities easier.

Boost your fitness with fun and practical ideas to help you get into shape, including Couch to 5K, Active 10 and the NHS Fitness Studio

2. Quit Smoking

It’s never too late to quit. You’ve got this!

Stopping smoking is one of the best things you will ever do for your health. So make this January your fresh start and join the thousands who are quitting. Check out the NHS better health website for advice, tools and tips. Including the free NHS Quit Smoking app!

3. Quit or Drink Less Alcohol

Cutting back on the booze can be a really effective way to improve your health, boost your energy, lose weight and save money.

Any reduction in the amount you drink every week will be beneficial – and with the right help, it’s easier than you think.

Use the NHS website to calculate your units, get tips on cutting down, track your drinking and download the free Drink Free Days app to manage your habits.

4. Eat more Fruit and Veg

Whether you’re cooking for a family or eating on the go, the NHS tips and recipes can help you get your 5 A Day

Evidence shows there are significant health benefits to getting at least 5 portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables every day. That’s 5 portions of fruit and veg in total, not 5 portions of each. A portion of fruit or vegetables is 80g.

5. Lose Weight

If you’re overweight, losing weight has many health benefits. Making small, simple changes to what and how much you are eating and drinking can really help you lose the pounds.

Get practical tips to lose excess weight, including getting started, healthy food swaps, and a 12-week weight loss plan by downloading the free NHS Weight Loss Plan app.

6. Have Fun!

List some fun things to do – not all resolutions have to be about self-discipline and self-improvement. One of the best things for your mental health is to unwind, have a laugh or feel fulfilled.

Whether you want to tick something off the bucket list or start that hobby you’ve always put off, have no shame or fear doing what your heart desires. Why not try booking a trip out of town with friends, a nostalgic visit to an arcade or amusement park, painting, joining a class or sports club. It can be simple and small, as long as you enjoy yourself!

7. Limit Screen Time

Many people depend on their phones and computers for work and entertainment. However, spending too much time on electronic devices — particularly on social media — has been linked to depression, anxiety, and loneliness in some studies.

Setting a resolution to cut back on the time you spend scrolling through social media, watching TV, or playing computer games may help boost your mood and enhance productivity.

8. Reduce Stress

Most people feel stressed sometimes and some people find stress helpful or even motivating. But if stress is affecting your life, there are things you can try that may help.

9. Get Better Sleep

Good-quality sleep makes a big difference to how we feel, mentally and physically, so it’s important to get enough. Watch this video on simple tips for better sleep

We all have evenings when we find it hard to fall asleep or we wake up in the night. 

Visit the NHS every-mind-matters website for more tips and advice.

10. Practice Self-Care

Taking time for yourself is not selfish. In fact, it’s imperative for optimal health and wellbeing. This is especially true for those in caretaker roles, such as parents and healthcare workers.

For people with busy schedules and limited time, making a resolution to engage in self-care may take some planning. However, it’s well worth the time investment.

Self-care doesn’t have to be elaborate or time consuming. It can simply mean taking a bath every week, attending your favourite weekly yoga class, preparing a healthy meal for yourself, going for a walk in nature, or getting an extra hour of sleep.

Registering with our Practice

You can register with our practice via paper forms from our receptionists or through the NHS online registration website (see below).

Eligibility

To be eligible to register you must have a fixed or temporary address in the FY8 postcode. If you are moving to the area, please inform us of your confirmed move in date.

We never discriminate on the grounds of age, sex, medical condition, race, disability or social class, and if we are unable to register you we will always provide you with a reason in writing.

Catchment Area

Online Registration

We are using a new online service called Register with a GP surgery that makes it easy to register with this GP surgery.

Just fill in this quick online form to start the process. You do not need proof of address or immigration status, ID or an NHS number.

The service is designed and run by the NHS, so your personal information is safe. It cuts our administrative workload and makes it easier for you to register.

Paper Registration

If you would like to register via our paper registration forms. Please visit the practice and ask one of our receptionists for a registration form and please bring one form of photo ID and one proof of address.

Cervical Cancer Awareness Week

A message from our Nurses…

COVID-19 Booster Vaccinations – Read More

Get your booster at new Blackpool South COVID-19 booster vaccination clinic

A new pop-up vaccination service specifically for the covid-19 vaccination booster programme has opened on Blackpool South Car Park at the end of Yeadon Way, Blackpool.  Opening Friday 24 September, the site will run seven days a week from 8am to 8pm.

This service provides an additional vaccine dose to people who have previously received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine to ensure continued protection for those most at risk from COVID-19.

Independent experts, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), have said that for the 2021 COVID-19 vaccination programme, the following people who received vaccination in Phase 1 of the COVID-19 vaccination programme should be offered a third dose COVID-19 booster vaccine.

  • those living in residential care homes for older adults
  • all adults aged 50 years or over
  • all those aged 16 to 49 years with underlying health conditions that put them at higher risk of severe COVID-19 (as set out in the green book), and adult carers
  • adult household contacts of immunosuppressed individuals

The JCVI advises that the booster vaccine dose should be offered no earlier than six months after completion of the first course of vaccination so please check when you are due your booster before booking an appointment.

Lancashire and South Cumbria Vaccination Programme Senior Responsible Officer Jane Scattergood, said: “The NHS COVID-19 vaccination programme has already prevented 24 million cases and saved more than 112,000 lives across the country.

“As we head into winter we should not drop our guard so I would urge anyone who receives their invitation to come forward and get a booster vaccination.

“Getting a top-up vaccine is the best way to protect yourself and your loved ones from this cruel virus.”

Book your appointment now by visiting https://bit.ly/bpboostervac

If you have any queries or you require support in using the online system, you can call the Fylde Coast COVID-19 vaccine hotline at 0300 7906856.

COVID-19 Vaccine – Read Now

COVID-19 Vaccine – Latest

❓We are receiving a large number of comments and questions regarding the COVID-19 vaccinations programme.

💉Clinics have now been launched at Blackpool Teaching Hospitals and a number of community sites run by GP practices. These clinics have been aimed primarily at those aged over 80.

📞 Please be assured that if you are over 80 and have not been contacted yet, or have a friend or relative who is still waiting, they will be offered a vaccine soon.

📝 Along with all our other local GP practices, we have drawn up lists of these patients, however the Pfizer vaccine comes in packs of 975, so it is not possible to vaccinate everyone at once and so some people have to wait slightly longer for the next batch to be delivered.

🏡 Vaccination clinics in the community are being run by a designated practice for each area. In Lytham St Annes, that practice is Fernbank Surgery. These practices are organising the administering of vaccinations to patients of all 6 practices in Lytham St Annes. This means when you are invited for your vaccination it may not be your own GP practice that contacts you, but the local vaccinations service.

🆕 The new Oxford Astra Zeneca vaccine is being directed initially to people who are housebound or living in care homes, but with more vaccines now becoming available we are confident more people will be vaccinated quickly.

⚠️ The guidance on receiving the second dose of a #COVID19 vaccination has been changed by the UK’s chief medical officer.

🗓️ This means if you had originally been booked for an appointment within two or three weeks, this may be cancelled and rescheduled.

💉 Doing this allows our local #NHS vaccination clinics to double the number of people receiving their initial vaccine. It has been estimated the Pfizer vaccine offers 89% effectiveness from two weeks after it is given and the AstraZeneca 74%.

🙏 We understand some people who have had the first dose are both keen and anxious to get their second as soon as possible and that the delay is not what you were expecting. Please be assured, you will be contacted to either book or reschedule your second dose appointment as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

🚫 We would like to thank you for your patience at this time and ask that you do not contact us to book a vaccine. We will be in touch as soon as we possibly can. Thank you 🙏

Find out about the roll-out at nhs.uk/CovidVaccine

Are you concerned you have symptoms of COVID-19?

From 18th May 2020, the general clinical case definition for COVID-19 has been updated to include loss of or change in smell or taste. It is now:

New continuous cough OR fever OR loss of/change in smell or taste

Everyone, including health and social care workers, should self-isolate if they develop a new continuous cough or fever or loss of/ change in smell or taste.

The individual’s household should also self-isolate for 14 days as per the current guidelines and the individual should stay at home for 7 days, or longer if they still have symptoms other than cough or loss of sense of smell or taste.

If you are concerned that you may have symptoms, please visit https://111.nhs.uk/covid-19/ and use the ‘Check your symptoms’ function for further guidance.

Community Hubs offering support during COVID-19 outbreak

Hubs have been set up in each district of Lancashire to help support the people who need it most during the COVID-19 outbreak.

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Funding appeal for Whitegate Drive defibrillator

People living in Blackpool are being asked to donate funds to help buy a piece of life-saving equipment. Staff at the Blackpool Urgent Treatment Centre are raising money for a community defibrillator to be put in a busy and under-resourced part of the town.

A defibrillator is a device that gives a high energy electric shock to the heart of someone who is having a heart attack, also known as cardiac arrest.

Dr Peter Smith, GP partner for Bloomfield Medical Ltd said: “For every minute a victim of sudden cardiac arrest does not receive treatment, their chance of survival decreases by 10 per cent.

“If a defibrillator is used within one minute of the victim collapsing, the victim’s survival rate increases to 90 per cent.

“Help us improve the survival rate of those that could collapse nearby by donating today.”

Currently, the nearest community defibrillator is a 20-minute walk away, or four-minute drive from the urgent treatment centre

Community defibrillators are easy to use, easy to carry and they won’t deliver a shock unless it is required. There is no clinical training required to be able to use the machine.

Dr Smith also said: “Defibrillators allow everyday members of the public to become lifesavers by providing the all-important shock before our ambulance crews arrive. Even just two or three minutes earlier can make a huge difference.”

To donate, go to: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/butc