Commitment to Accessibility

At Littlewick and the Dales Medical Centre, we believe that everyone should have equal access to healthcare. We provide a welcoming and accessible environment for all our patients, regardless of their mobility or physical abilities.

Both our sites are equipped to support patients with disabilities, including wide doorways, a lift to our first floor at our Littlewick site, and accessible parking spaces. Inside, we ensure that our consultation rooms are spacious enough to accommodate mobility aids, and we have fully accessible toilet facilities and wheelchairs available on site.

We are also committed to meeting the needs of patients with sensory impairments. Our team is trained to assist those with visual or hearing challenges, and we’ve made sure our signs are easy to read. If needed, we offer alternative communication methods to ensure everyone can easily navigate our practice.

Your comfort and well-being are our priority, and we strive to create an inclusive space where all patients can receive the care they need. If you have any specific accessibility needs or require assistance during your visit, please don’t hesitate to contact us ahead of your appointment or ask any member of our team for support.

Room Pricing & Availability

Room Pricing & Availability 

Consultation Rooms/Offices/Library                          £13.75 per hour plus VAT

Clinical Consultation Rooms                                       £16.50 per hour plus VAT

Small Meeting Room                                                  £16.00 per hour plus VAT

Minor Ops Room                                                         £19.80 per hour plus VAT

Board Room                                                                £19.80 per hour plus VAT

The Skinner Suite/Seminar Room                               £27.50 per hour plus VAT
Discounted @ £99.00 for half day (4 hours)
Discounted @ £192.50 for full day
(Refreshments Included)

To enquire about room availability, please call Littlewick Medical Centre on 0115 932 5229 and ask for Beth Boot or email ddicb@littlewick.letters@nhs.net

 

Shared Care Medication

Shared care is a process whereby responsibility for a patient’s medication is shared between a GP and a consultant. In such cases, the consultant assesses the patient’s suitability for the medication, performs any necessary baseline investigations, and provides full counselling on the medication. The consultant then prescribes the medication and adjusts the dose until the patient is stable.

Once the patient is stable, the consultant writes to the GP to request consideration of shared care. If the GP accepts, they take over the prescribing and monitoring of the patient, notifying the consultant if any issues arise. The patient must remain under the care of the consultant. For shared care to be valid, there must also be a written agreement outlining the duties and responsibilities of each party.

The primary goal of shared care is to facilitate appropriate clinical oversight and maintain patient safety, all in the best interests of the patient.

It should be noted, however, that shared care is entirely voluntary for GPs, and they are not obliged to participate.

We do not participate in shared care arrangements with private providers, in line with BMA guidance:

“Shared care with private providers is not recommended due to the general NHS Constitution principle of keeping as clear a separation as possible between private and NHS care. Shared care is currently set up as an NHS service, and entering into a shared care arrangement may have implications regarding governance and quality assurance, as well as promoting health inequalities. A private patient seeking access to shared care should therefore have their care fully transferred to the NHS. Shared care may be appropriate where private providers are delivering commissioned NHS services and where appropriate shared care arrangements are in place.”

We will consider patients referred to private providers under the NHS Right to Choose Scheme on an individual basis. We get a lot of questions regarding ADHD providers. For an up-to-date list of providers participating in the Right to Choose Scheme for ADHD, please follow this link: https://adhduk.co.uk/right-to-choose/

Private Fees and Charges

Most services that the NHS provides to people are free of charge, but there are some exceptions to this e.g., prescription charges.  Sometimes a charge must be made to cover some of the costs as the service isn’t covered by the funding GP’s receive from the NHS for example, medical reports for insurance companies, private health insurance claims and other letters and forms that need completing that require the GP to review the patient’s medical records.

The contract GP’s have with the NHS covers medical services to patients, but GP’s also do a lot of non-medial work as well which is not funded examples of non-NHS services for which GP’s can charge their patients include but not limited to:

  • Holiday cancellation forms
  • Private medical insurance forms
  • Some travel vaccinations
  • Letters requested by or on behalf of, the patient.

The time the GP spends completing forms and preparing reports takes the GP away from direct medical care.  In addition, non-NHS work must be undertaken outside of NHS contracted time.  GP’s have a very high workload which can add up to them working 60 hours plus a week and paperwork, such as, filling insurance forms in and writing medical reports for insurance companies adds to this workload.

When a GP signs a certificate or completes a report it is a condition of their medical registration that they only sign what they know to be true.  Therefore, to complete a very simple form the GP must review the patients entire medical record. Inaccuracy in a report can have serious consequences for a GP with the General Medical Council or even the Police.

How are charges decided?

The British Medical Association (BMA) is the registered Trade Union for doctors, it recommends that GPs tell patients in advance if they will be charged for any work.

Erewash Health Practices, follow the guidelines set by the BMA using their fees calculator.  The fees calculator takes into consideration how much time it takes the GP to complete the work to ensure the cost covers the work undertaken.  Our charges have recently been reviewed for the first time in 5 years.

 

New charges from 1 July 2024

Description of work Time involved Price

Includes VAT*

 
Simple letters / forms 15 mins £45
Complex letter / insurance claim form / supplementary GP report 30 mins £90
60 mins £180
Full medical examination & report e.g., adoption, HGV etc. 45-60 mins £198
Medical report without examination inc. IGPR 30 mins £90
Firearms licence 30 mins £90

Please note, we do not do PIP support letters or housing letters.

*The Practice reserves the right to amend the fees , based on the complexity of the work

Patient Participant Group (PPG)

We work very closely with our Patient Participation Group (PPG) to help improve the quality of service that we provide. Please take the time to look at their notice board in reception to find out how you could get involved or alternatively email secretary.littlewickppg@gmail.com

GDPR Guidance

Please see below our practice guidance on the lawful basis for Data Collection and processing Patient Information under GDPR 2018 and Data Protection Act 2018, including individuals information rights.

Littlewick Medical Centre GDPR Privacy Notice v2.8 May 2023

Littlewick Medical Centre COVID19 Privacy Notice v5 May 2023

GPDPR Extract

The current NHS Digital (NHSD) extract of GP data for Research purposes (known as the GPDPR) has been delayed due to NHSD wishing to review the way in which this data will be collected, to conduct more public involvement and information about the plans and change the way in which patients can opt out of the extract of their GP data.

Currently the only way to opt out is to complete a Type 1 opt out form and return this to the practice by the 1st September (this can be found further down on this webpage).  However, this extract will not be taken until the NHSD have changed the way it will take the data and respect the patient’s choice for using their data.  NHSD are introducing the following changes to the opt out process which will mean that patients will be able to change their opt-out status at any time:-

  • Patients do not need to register a Type 1 opt-out by 1st September to ensure their GP data will not be uploaded.
  • NHS Digital will create the technical means to allow GP data that has previously been uploaded to the system via the GPDPR collection to be deleted when someone registers a Type 1 opt-out.
  • The plan to retire Type 1 opt-outs will be deferred for at least 12 months while we get the new arrangements up and running and will not be implemented without consultation with the RCGP, the BMA and the National Data Guardian.

This means that you can opt out at any time in the future and NHSD will delete data that they already have taken for research purposes, the deadline of the 01/09/2020 has been delayed until a new system of opt out is developed.  Hopefully, this will be a simple centralised approach via the NHS app or NHS website to avoid paper form and administration work for your GP.

We will update you when we know more about the NHSD plans to change how you can control who has access to your data.

Click here to download our Type One Opt-Out-Form

Littlewick Information

We are a training practice for medical students and doctors shortly to be GPs. We also help in the training of nurses. The practice has seven partners and a purpose-built branch surgery in West Hallam. In 2010 we moved into a brand-new purpose-built surgery on the site of the original Littlewick surgery with disabled and patient car parking at the rear of the building accessed via Orchard Street. We hope this will help us to continue to provide a better standard of care for our patients.

For more information, please find our most recent practice leaflet from the link below:

Click here to view the Littlewick Medical Centre practice leaflet.

Training Practice

Medical Students / Nursing Students / GP Registrars

We have a particular interest in training the doctors and nurses for the future. Some of the GP Registrar and student consultations may be videoed or recorded, with the patient’s consent, for training purposes only.

If you do not wish to be seen by a registrar or medical student, please inform a member of the reception team. This will not affect your treatment in any way.

Zero Tolerance

The Practice takes it very seriously if any member of team is treated in an abusive, aggressive, intimidating or violent way.

The Practice supports the government’s ‘Zero Tolerance’ campaign for Health Service Staff. This states that GPs and their staff have a right to care for others without fear of being attacked or abused. To successfully provide these services a mutual respect between all the practice team and patients has to be in place. All our team aim to be polite, helpful, and sensitive to all patients’ individual needs and circumstances. They would respectfully remind patients that very often the team could be confronted with a multitude of varying and sometimes difficult tasks and situations, all at the same time.  The team understand that ill patients do not always act in a reasonable manner and will take this into consideration when trying to deal with a misunderstanding or complaint.

However, aggressive and/or intimidating behaviour, will not be tolerated in any way and may result in you being removed from the Practice list and, in extreme cases, the Police being contacted.

In order for the practice to maintain good relations with their patients the practice would like to ask all its patients to read and take note of the occasional types of behaviour that would be found unacceptable:

  1. Using bad language or swearing at practice staff
  2. Any threats or acts of physical violence towards any member of the Primary Health Care Team or other patients
  3. Verbal abuse towards the staff in any form
  4. Racial abuse and sexual harassment will not be tolerated within this practice
  5. Persistent or unrealistic demands that cause stress to staff will not be accepted. Requests will be met wherever possible and explanations given when they cannot
  6. Causing damage/stealing from the Practice’s premises, staff or patients
  7. Obtaining drugs and/or medical services fraudulently

We ask you to treat the practice team with courteously at all times.

Removal from the practice list

A good patient clinician relationship, based on mutual respect and trust, is the cornerstone of good patient care. The removal of patients from our list is an exceptional and rare event and is a last resort in an impaired patient-practice relationship. When trust has irretrievably broken down, it is in the patient’s interest, just as much as that of the practice, that they should find a new practice. An exception to this is on immediate removal on the grounds of violence e.g. when the Police are involved, or those behaviours mentioned above

Removing other members of the household

In rare cases, however, because of the possible need to visit patients at home it may be necessary to terminate responsibility for other members of the family or the entire household. The prospect of visiting patients where a relative who is no longer a patient of the practice by virtue of their unacceptable behaviour resides, or being regularly confronted by the removed patient, may make it too difficult for the practice to continue to look after the whole family. This is particularly likely where the patient has been removed because of violence or threatening behaviour and keeping the other family members could put the practice team at risk.

GP Net Earnings

All GP practices are required to declare the mean earnings (e.g. average pay) for GPs working to deliver NHS services to patients at each practice.

The average pay for GPs working in Littlewick Medical Centre in the last financial year was £72,688 before tax and National Insurance. This is for 0 full time GPs, 16 part time GPs and 0 locum GPs who worked in the practice for longer than six months.