Practice Charter

• You will be treated with courtesy and respect by all practice staff.
• We will make same day urgent appointments available as far as possible within the limitations of our resources.
• Our standard is to see 80% of patients within 20 minutes of their appointment time. If you wait longer than this, please see the receptionist.
• We aim to answer the telephone within 6 rings but do have a call queuing system which will tell you where you are in the queue. Please be patient with us and we will answer as soon as possible.
• All comments and suggestions about the service are welcome. Please use the patient feedback forms.
• All complaints are taken seriously. If you have a complaint please speak to any member of staff initially (also see “Complaints” below).
• Requests for repeat prescriptions are usually dealt with within 2 working days.  We regret we will not accept telephone requests for repeat prescriptions due to the possibility of errors in communicating the correct information.

A charter for the care of people who are nearing the end of their life

“You matter because you are you; you matter to the last moment of your life and we will do all we can, not only to let you die peacefully, but to help you live until you die.” Dame Cicely Saunders

We want to offer people who are nearing the end of their life the highest quality of care and support. We wish to help you live as well as you can, for as long as you can. Therefore, if and when you want us to, we will:

• Listen to your wishes about the remainder of your life, including your final days and hours, answer as best we can any questions that you have and provide you with the information that you feel you need;
• Help you think ahead so as to identify the choices that you may face, assist you to record your decisions and do our best to ensure that your wishes are fulfilled, wherever possible, by all those who offer you care and support;
• Talk with you and the people who are important to you about your future needs. We will do this as often as you feel the need, so that you can all understand and prepare for everything that is likely to happen;
• Endeavour to ensure clear written communication of your needs and wishes to those who offer you care and support both within and outside of our surgery hours;
• Do our utmost to ensure that your remaining days and nights are as comfortable as possible, and that you receive all the particular specialist care and emotional and spiritual support that you need;
• Do all we can to help you preserve your independence, dignity and sense of personal control throughout the course of your illness;
• Support the people who are important to you, both as you approach the end of your life and during their bereavement.

We also invite your ideas and suggestions as to how we can improve the care and support that we deliver to you, the people who are important to you and others in similar situations.

For more information from the practice End of Life Care Lead, please contact:

Dr J Smith on 01332 414944