Kings Medical Practice News www.kingmedicalpractice.co.uk

At the Baptist Chapel, next to Kings Medical Centre, builders have been re roofing the Chapel, school room and caretakers house that was very badly damaged by fire in 2009. But for the last two weeks work seems to have stopped and it is only today that I found out why. The builders, Killby and Gayford, have gone into administration. Kilby and Gayford were a 150 year old compancy that had an impressive portfolio of work including the remodelling to 10 Downing Street in 2008. You can read more about it by clicking here . I think it is very sad that yet another building firm has gone to the wall.

This week the practice has started providing extra appointment capacity in an attempt to reduce the number of patients going to local Accident and Emergency Departments. We are doing this as part of the Primary Care Transformation Scheme funded by Wakefield Alliance - our local Clinical Commissiong Group. The scheme is investing £2.6 million in local practices and if successful will save £5.3 million per year by less patients attending A&E and less patients getting admitted to hospital. The investment in general practice has to all be spent on additional staff and we plan to spend it on extra doctors to provide extra same day appointments in the afternoon, extra nurses to ensure that all patients with a long term condition have a Care Plan and additional administrative staff to ensure that patients with long term conditions are called to surgery to be seen. We have already had some of the money to 'pump prime' the scheme, now it is up to us to see if we can deliver .... !

From 1st April the cost of a prescription item has risen by 25p to £7.65. You have to pay a prescription charge for every item on a prescription so if there are two items you will have to pay £15.30. Prescriptions are free for the under 16's, over 60's, people on income related benefits, pregnant women and people with certain long term conditions. Contraception is free. You can get an exemption form if you have cancer, diabetes and are on treatment, have epilepsy, hypothyroidism and few other conditions. But the list of long term conditions that you can get a exemption form for is quite short and actually makes little sense - you are not eligible for an exemption form if you have a heart condition, asthma or raised blood pressure. Makes no sense! However there is some help available. If you have to pay for more that three prescription items in 3 months or more than 13 items in 12 months you may find it cheaper to buy a Prescription Prepayment Certificate (PPC). You can buy a PP