Econsult

For safety reasons we have reluctantly decided to turn off econsults when we are closed.

We recognise that the whole NHS, including general practice, is under immense pressure and econsult is a convenient way to ask us administrative or minor clinical queries without taking an appointment. However, it was never intended to be used for urgent queries because it may be a few days before they are read by a doctor. Our trained staff do screen econsults and highlight any to the doctors that look like they may be urgent, but this cannot happen when we are closed. Unfortunately, increasingly we have econsults submitted for urgent problems that have not been triaged for up to 3 days (at weekends) putting patients potentially at risk.  To get the best out of e-consult: please don't use for urgent problems (that is problems that you think may need to be dealt with the same day) - phone the practice or if we are closed phone NHS111, who have access to urgent respiratory hub and GP out of hours appointments; give as much detail as possible to help us sign post you in the right direction including where appropriate the right appointment at the right time with the right person; and tell us if there are times you cannot attend - the more options we have the better able we are to find a suitable appointment where one is needed.

Dr Tasker Leaving

At the end of January, our wonderful senior partner and longest serving GP at Glenpark, Dr Bronwyn Tasker, will be retiring. As a practice we are really sad to see her leave, however we are excited for her as she starts on this next stage of her life.

Dr Tasker started at Glenpark as a GP Registrar in February 1992. She then became a partner at the practice in August 1992 and has remained dedicated to Glenpark for the last 32 years. During this time, she has seen many changes and challenges within the NHS and the community of Dunston and the surrounding area. 

She has always been passionate about medical education, and in her role as a GP Trainer she has developed and trained a huge number of GPs, including most of the doctors who are now the GPs at our practice.

Dr Tasker has a special interest in respiratory conditions such as asthma and COPD - she has ensured that patients at Glenpark have always been offered the most up to date care for these conditions, and her years as Respiratory Clinical Lead for Gateshead saw her leading in projects which have improved care for patients across Gateshead.

She will be hugely missed by all the staff at Glenpark and we know many patients will be sorry to see her leave. We would like to invite any patients and previous staff members who want to drop in and say an informal goodbye to Dr Tasker, and celebrate the Glenpark Medical Practice that she has helped to build up over the years, to Glenpark Reception on Friday January 26th between 12.30-2pm. Tea, coffee, cold drinks and cakes will be available.

 Appointment Pressure

Dr Tasker retiring adds to the pressure the practice is already feeling with the winter viral season (and from all reports, flu hasn't yet hit us) and having 3 on maternity leave plus a vacant salaried post. We are delighted to have appointed an excellent doctor who will commence at the end of March and we expect those on maternity leave to start returning from Easter. Until now the practice has been employing some excellent locums. However, locums have not been easy to find and do by their nature create an additional workload for the partners who have to deal with locums blood results and paperwork etc. In addition, we are being asked to do far more on behalf of hospitals as they manage their long waiting lists. Instead of investing more in general practice, which already does around 90% of the NHS patient contacts for less than 10% of the NHS budget, the government has, over the years, chosen to invest extra capacity in NHS111, urgent care centres, non-doctor roles and so on.

Despite the pressures on the practice, we are in the top 10% of practices in the country in terms of the number of appointments we offer our patients and we are offering about 15% more appointments than prior to COVID. The partnersat the practice are already working longer hours for less pay.

However, there comes a point where we have to prioritise patient safety.  For this reason, there will be times over the next 5 weeks where we will have to limit our same day access to urgent only problems. We will mitigate this by:

• Defering routine recalls for a few weeks (we are able to put some extra appointments into March), so that patient routine requests and same day demand is prioritised
• Adding additional nursing appointments so that less complex routine recalls can be reviewed by our excellent nursing staff (for example, Sr Ashcroft can now prescribe for COPD, asthma, diabetes and hypertension)

We do ask our patients though to help us and each other by:

• allowing our reception team to ask questions about the reason for an appointment request
• Using econsult and putting as much detail as possible in so that we can direct you to the most appropriate care pathway.
• accepting appointments at GP Access Hubs (such as the Acute Respiratory Hubs and GP Extra Care at Blaydon) - this is where the government and local commissioners have chosen to invest extra capacity instead of in practices
• accepting appointments with other health professionals where appropriate (including our first contact physios, practice pharmacists, mental health nurses)
• accepting referrals for minor complaints to the Community Pharmacy Consultation Scheme where appropriate

By doing so, this frees up GP appointments for those patients who would really benefit from the expertise that a GP offers.

There is still time to book your flu jab if you haven't had it this year and are eligible. Please speak to reception to book yours.

For more information about this year's flu campaign and to check if you are eligible, click here.

About Us

At Glenpark we offer the highest quality modern healthcare, whilst being grounded in traditional patient, family and community centred values.

  The practice was founded in 1905 by Dr Dougall on Ravensworth Road and has remained committed to being at the heart of Dunston ever since.

   The practice has about 9400 patients from quite a small area centred around Dunston.

Our compact practice area makes us very accessible for our patients. And with a team that now comprises 11 permanent doctors, up to 3 registrars, 4 nurses, a health care assistant and a phlebotomist, we can offer our patients a wide choice of skills, knowledge and experience.

We are part of the Gateshead Inner West Primary Care Network. Please click here to view our website and find out more about the services we offer as a PCN. 

Appointments Reminder

Following feedback from patients earlier in the year, we returned to a pre-bookable appointment system. Appointments are prebookable with doctors up to 2 weeks in advance and 4 weeks for nurses. We do not have appointments to book "on-the-day"; for urgent problems that cannot wait until the next routine appointment (usually there is abotu a 1 week wait for routine appointments), we have a duty doctor who will phone back. More...

Update to the privacy Notice: Our phone system records all calls for training and quality purposes. Callers can request call recording is turned off.

Update on the Flu & Covid-19 Autumn Booster Programme 

There is still time to book your flu jab but the COVID-19 booster programme has now closed.

Targetted Lung Health Checks

Patients from Glenpark will soon be invited to have a lung health check. For information about the programme and who will be eligible please click here.

There are three ways to get in touch with us at Glenpark Medical Centre.

It’s no secret that our surgeries have been busier than ever. That’s why there are now more ways to get in touch with us. You can:

• Go Online: Use eConsult if your problem can be resolved electronically (such as sick note requests), or book a telephone/in person appointment through our online service, Patient Access. 
• Call us: during surgery hours on 0191 4604 300.
• Visit the surgery at Ravensworth Road, Dunston, Gateshead NE11 9FJ from Monday to Friday during our opening hours. 

Pick the option that suits you best. No matter how you choose to get in touch with us, whether it’s using an eConsult/Patient Access, calling or visiting, you’ll get the help that’s right for you.        

Please remember, when visiting the surgery, you still need to wear a face covering and maintain social distancing to protect vulnerable patients from Coronavirus infection.  

The NHS wants to give people better ways to see their personal health information online. We know that people want to be able to access their health records. It can help you see test results faster. It also lets you read and review notes from your appointments in your own time.

We’re now letting you see all the information within your health record automatically. If you are over 16 and have an online account, such as through the NHS App, NHS website, or another online primary care service, you will now be able to see all future notes and health records from your doctor (GP). Some people can already access this feature, this won’t change for you.

This means that you will be able to see notes from your appointments, as well as test results and any letters that are saved on your records. This only applies to records from your doctor (GP), not from hospitals or other specialists. You will only be able to see information from 1 November 2022. For most people, access will be automatic, and you won’t need to do anything.

Your doctor (GP) may talk to you to discuss test results before you are able to see some of your information on the app. Your doctor (GP) may also talk to you before your full records access is given to make sure that having access is of benefit to you. There might be some sensitive information on your record, so you should talk to your doctor if you have any concerns.

These changes only apply to people with online accounts. If you do not want an online account, you can still access your health records by requesting this information through reception. The changes also only apply to personal information about you. If you are a carer and would like to see information about someone you care for, speak to reception staff.

The NHS App, website and other online services are all very secure, so no one is able to access your information except you. You’ll need to make sure you protect your login details. Don’t share your password with anyone as they will then have access to your personal information.

If you do not want to see your health record, or if you would like more information about these changes, please speak to your GP or reception staff.