Clinics & Services

In addition to general medical consultations, we are pleased to be able to provide services covering the following specific areas:

• Asthma
• Chronic obstructive airways disease
• Coronary heart disease
• Diabetes
• Cervical screening
• Dressings
• Blood tests
• Steroid Joint Injections
• Minor Surgical Procedures
  
• Contraception - click on the tab above for further information

Our receptionists will be happy to advise you on the most appropriate member of the Practice team to see.

Non-NHS Services

Some services that we provide fall outside the scope of what the NHS funds, as they are not part of day-to-day General Medical Services. 

GPs are not employed by the NHS. The NHS pays us for specific NHS work, but for non-NHS work, the fee has to cover our costs. As we are self-employed, our costs – staff, buildings, heating, lighting, printing, paper etc. – must be covered in the same way as any small business.

At times it might appear that it's "just a signature" that's being requested, but every time we sign a certificate or complete a report, we must to take time away from our NHS work to review the patient’s records, to ensure that what we are signing for is correct. Many organisations use GP signatures to try and offload legal liability for mishaps or accidents that might occur during certain activities,  by asking for prior certification of fitness to participate.  In order to indemnify us against such liabilities, the Practice requires to pay indemnity insurance totaling many thousands of pounds, and the fees we charge reflect this. 

Examples of such private services include the following:

• Medicals for pre-employment, sports and driving requirements (HGV, PSV etc.)
• Insurance claim forms
• Prescriptions for taking medication abroad
• Private sick notes
• Letters for employers, schools, universities and colleges

A comprehensive list of our fees for private services can be downloaded here:

PRIVATE PRICE LIST

Our reception staff will be happy to advise you about appointment availability and applicable charges.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE PRACTICE DOES NOT SIGN PASSPORT/VISA APPLICATION FORMS, OR POWER OF ATTORNEY FORMS (UNLESS TO CERTIFY LACK OF CAPACITY)

Contraceptive Services

• The Practice provides a full range of contraceptive advice and services, including fitting of Intrauterine Devices (IUDs) and Mirena Intrauterine Systems (IUSs) (also known as 'coils'), and the Contraceptive Implant.

• If you want to know more about your choices when it comes to contraception, please download Your Guide to Contraception. 

• If you're a man and are thinking of having a vasectomy, you can watch a film about the procedure by clicking HERE. If you've decided that you'd like to go ahead with a vasectomy, you can arrange this very simply by contacting the Chalmers Sexual Health Centre on 0131 536 1512.  This number will get you directly through to the vasectomy secretarial team, where you can leave a message and wait for someone to call you back.

• If you have just had a baby and want to know what your contraception options are, you can read about this here.

• Further, more detailed, information about all types of contraception available can be found on the excellent Contraception Choices website produced by University College London.  The website allows you to work out which type of contraception is right for you, and it provides clear information, including videos, about everything you could possibly want to know regarding contraceptives.  You can access it by clicking on this link.

• If you are interested in using the form of contraceptive called Sayana Press, that women self-administer, by injection, every 13 weeks, please click here to download information about it.  You can also watch a short video to make sure that it is something that definitely appeals to you by clicking here. If after learning more about this method you would like to try it out, you will first need to make an appointment with one of the GPs to ensure that it is medically appropriate for you to use it. Once you have been assessed by the doctor, you will be given your first prescription for the medicine, and you will be asked to make an appointment with one of our nurses in order to receive the necessary training that you will need to self-administer.  You should collect your first dose of Sayana Press from the pharmacy and bring it with you to your training appointment. Our nurse will use this appointment to make sure that you know how to give yourself future doses at home every 13 weeks.

• If you want to discuss more about having a Contraceptive Implant fitted in the Surgery, please make an appointment with either Dr Powell or Dr Russell (male).  It is essential that your appointment is with one of these two doctors, as none of the other GPs is trained to fit them.

• If you are interested in having a 'coil' fitted (properly known as an Intrauterine Device or System), please watch this short film, as it will give you all the information you need to know.

• If you want to inquire about having an Intrauterine Device or System ('coil') fitted in the Surgery, if you have not already done so, please make a telephone appointment with Dr Powell (female).  Before you speak to her, please watch the film mentioned above.  If you decide to have a coil fitted, please ensure that you complete and bring along this self-assessment form to your coil-fitting appointment. 

Sexual Health Advice and Screening
 

• The Practice offers a full and confidential range of FREE testing and advice to those concerned about sexually transmitted infections, or other aspects of sexual health.

• Testing for Chlamydia and Gonorrhoea is readily available through a simple, painless, self-taken vaginal swab for women, and a self-taken urine specimen for men. You do not have to be physically examined, and can take these specimens yourself in the privacy of your own home before submitting them back to the Practice.

• For men who have sex with men, rectal and throat swabs for Chlamydia and Gonorrhoea are easily taken in the surgery by one of the clinical staff. 

• Testing for syphillis and blood-borne viruses such as HIV and Hepatitis B are easily available to anyone of any sexual orientation through a simple blood test. This should be discussed with one of the doctors first however, so that results can be interpreted in the correct context.

• Men who have sex with men can protect themselves from catching Hepatitis A or B during sex by having a course of simple vaccinations against these viruses.  These can be given, free of charge, here in the surgery by our nurses. If you are interested in this, please mention it to your doctor, or feel free to book an appointment with the nurse directly.  Vaccination against both viruses is given using one single, combination, injection, but you will need a course of 4 of these injections over several months to give you full protection.

• For those patients concerned about attending the GP for such testing or advice, alternative sexual health services can be access through  Chalmers Sexual Health Centre.  There is also a number of other clinics throughout the city that might be more local to you, and these can be found by clicking here.

• If you would like to know more about any sexually transmitted infection, please click here.

Monitoring and Recording Your Blood Pressure at Home

For some people, coming to see the doctor or nurse can be stressful.  For these people, this can mean that their blood pressure (BP) and pulse rate goes up whenever they see a healthcare professional. This is called "White-Coat Hypertension", and it makes it difficult to determine what their "true" BP really is underneath all that anxiety. For this reason, we may ask you to monitor your own BP at home, over a period of a week or so, and then give us a note of your readings so that we can work out your average home BP.  This should reflect what your blood pressure is really like if you suffer from White-Coat Hypertension.  This can also be very helpful if you are already on medication for your blood pressure, or you've had it increased recently, and it doesn't seem to be working properly.

If you have your own BP monitor at home, you can use this, or alternatively, we can loan you one from the Surgery for a week or two, depending on availability.  If you do have your own machine, please be aware that only those that measure your BP at your arm provide a medically correct result. Those that measure BP at the wrist are not suitable for medical use.  In addition, not all BP machines are of good enough quality for medical use, where the results might end up in you taking medication for the rest of your life. All of our Surgery machines meet these standards, so are reliable, but if you use your own machine, you should first check that it meets the approval of the British Hypertension Society by checking this website:  Approved BP Machines

We have our own specially designed form on which to record your BP readings, and you will be given a copy by the doctor or nurse.  If you lose it, or need to start again, another copy can be downloaded here:

  Home Blood Pressure Monitoring Form

Please DO use our special form and DO NOT use scraps of paper, as this information needs to be clear and easy to interpret, and will be scanned into your electronic medical file. 

If you would like additional instructions on how to measure your own BP at home, please watch: How to use an Automatic Blood Pressure Machine