THE PEACOCK TIMES ISSUE 7 JULY 2016 PEACOCK HEALTHCARE

© CHRISTOPHER PEACOCKE 2008 CONCEIVING OF CONSCIOUS STATES CHRISTOPHER
LIVING IN CLOUD PEACOCK LAND BY DAMIAN TAMBINI
SUSAN DETLEFSEN PHD 723 SE PEACOCK LANE PORTLAND OR

Peacock Healthcare, 577 Carlton Road, Carlton, Nottingham

The Peacock Times Issue 7 July 2016

Peacock Healthcare, 428 Carlton Hill, Carlton, Nottingham. NG4 1HQ

http://www.thepeacockpractice.co.uk Phone number 0115 9580415

PPG 10th Anniversary Edition

Did you know that the Patient Participation Group (PPG) has been in existence for 10 years, and the reason for that existence? No?

It was originally set up when the surgery was looking to move to its new (current) location. The partners were keen to get the view from patients and also their help and support in making the move. Thanks to everyone involved with the PPG over the years.

Since the move, the PPG exists to be a link between the staff and patients at Peacock. We are all volunteers, and we promote various health issues in the surgery throughout the year.

We will also take up problems or concerns on patients behalf. These should be raised with the Practice Manager in the first instance, and if necessary, they will be passed to the PPG.

In this issue of the Peacock Times, we talk to the newest member of staff, Marie Challinor, as well as getting the thoughts from people who have been patients at Peacock for a long time.

Marie Challinor

THE PEACOCK TIMES ISSUE 7 JULY 2016 PEACOCK HEALTHCARE

Marie started at Peacock on April 8th and is working as a Nurse Practitioner. Some people will remember Marie from many years ago when she worked part time at Peacock. She joined Peacock last time just before Dr Basu retired.

She left Peacock in 2003 to take up a full time post as an Asthma nurse, but this particular role involved a lot of travelling, which became too tiring, and there was no continuity of care for patients. Marie then joined a GP surgery in Arnold.

While there she trained to become a Nurse Practitioner i.e. someone who can prescribe and run minor illness clinics, where she mainly covered respiratory illnesses. In fact, people with respiratory problems would ask to see her rather than the doctors!

She was involved with triage sessions for many years, and improved the procedures on the computer system to ensure best practise.

Those clinical and organisational skills are of great use at Peacock, especially as the same computer system is in use, but is fairly new here.

Because of her training, Marie has taken responsibility for repeat prescriptions, as well as some items that doctors used to do, although she is not doing respiratory work now (that is done by Karen).

She has prescribing responsibility, and also comes into the practice as a new pair of eyes, and is looking to improve and streamline the admin and organisational procedures. Other staff at Peacock can see that what she is doing will make things easier for them as well as being better for the patients.

Marie has settled in well. She came from a new build surgery in Arnold, so likes the new setting at Peacock. Also, there are quite a few people still working at Peacock that she remembers from before which helps.

What improvements would she like to see at Peacock?

She would like as many people as possible to sign up to electronic prescriptions as she feels they are safer and much easier for the practice to administer.

What would she change in the NHS?

She would love asthmatics to get free prescriptions - it may surprise some of you to know that they don't. (I think we can all agree on this given the life threatening nature of asthma!)

What is the biggest change from when she worked at Peacock before?

The amount of work that nurses can do now without having to refer to a doctor, thus freeing up doctors time.

I am sure that she is a very capable addition to the clinical staff, and the PPG warmly welcome her to the practice.

Thoughts from the past

Looking back over the last 10 years has made us think even further back, and here are some thoughts from long standing Peacock patients ;

Marilyn Bradley was registered as a Peacock patient when she was born.

At that time Dr Webster was running the practice at the old location when it was just a house.

She remembers that you used to have to go in through the front door, with reception and the waiting room on one side and the consulting room on the other. You had to sit and wait your turn; there were no appointments.

There was a lady on reception who was there for many years, who was called Pauline - does anyone else remember her?

At one point, Marilyn's mother answered a knock on the door, and was surprised to see Dr Webster with a sugar lump (polio vaccine) for Marilyn. A surprise home visit - that wouldn't happen now!

Another time, Marilyn was eating an orange iced lolly, and must have been allergic to something in it because her lips swelled up! Her mother took her to the surgery, and got to see the doctor almost immediately as everyone wanted her to go in front of them. They must have thought it might be contagious!

A final memory from Marilyn was of calling at the surgery just after 6pm, and Dr Oliver answered the door. He had only been at the practice for a few weeks, which would make it around 1985. Where have the years gone?

Jeanne Gorman who has also been a long standing patient remembers Pauline the receptionist. At one point, Jeanne's friend had a baby and was constantly at the surgery with the baby as she just did not know what to do, what was normal, and was constantly worried.

Pauline said to her that she didn't know why she was so worried with the baby as she was 'carrying a spare'.

Somehow, I don't think that sort of thing would be said now!

Jeanne fell down the stairs and went to see Dr Basu who said that as she didn't come very often, he would send her for an Xray!

Makes you wonder what he would have done if she had been a frequent patient!

He also sent her to hospital with what he suspected was a serious problem. When she was talking to other people on the ward, they had been waiting for a year to eighteen months to get to hospital whereas Dr Basu was right on the case.

The only problem was that a friend of Jeanne's with a similar problem was also waiting to go into hospital, so Jeanne got her place!

Barbara Ludlow remembers that when she joined Peacock, Dr Webster had just started! Things were so much different then when you used to have the family doctor. Although doctors officially worked 5 days per week, they were also on call (not good for them, but the doctor knew you and the whole family).

She has seen many changes over the years, and Dr Oliver has done a lot to improve things.

Barbara now sees Dr Aravinder , and in her words 'I wouldn't go to anyone else'.

Editor's Comments

It is amazing how much medicine has changed in the 50+ years that the Peacock practice has been in existence. This was brought home to me in a chance remark that I made to Dr Oliver.

My younger brother was born 55 years ago. He was a 'blue baby'; where my mum's blood contained antibodies which were attacking his blood and he was born looking blue.

He immediately had to have a blood transfusion to change his blood.

Now that in itself was miraculous, that the doctors knew in advance of the birth that it would happen, and so my mum had to go to a major hospital, not a cottage hospital, for the birth.

Dr Oliver told me that 'blue babies' don't happen now, as the mums are given an injection to stop the antibodies! That is just so incredible, and only one example of the progress.

The NHS can do so much, but it works so much better if we can help ourselves.

If you have a condition, find out about it, and see what you can do for yourself whether that be avoiding certain foods, joining a meeting with others in the same boat, losing a bit of weight (I know all about that one!), stopping smoking (the absolute best thing you can do for yourself) being a bit more active (and I don't mean gym!) etc etc.

If you are lucky enough to be fighting fit, make sure you spend time looking after yourself and keep it that way.

We have so much to be thankful for in our lives, including those who are living with serious illness. We don't live in a war torn country, we have the NHS, we have the Welfare State which with all of it's flaws is a safety net for those in need.

We aren't plagued by drought - although a bit more sunshine this summer wouldn't go amiss.

Many things to be thankful for, and surely one of them must be the fact that we are patients at the Peacock surgery!

Jennifer Johns

Produced by Peacock Practice Patient Participation Group (PPG)

The Peacock Times Issue 7 Page 4 of 4

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