Category: Practice News

Did you know lung cancer is the UK’s biggest cancer killer? Often symptoms don’t show until a later stage. The #NHSLungHealthCheck help us identify lung cancer early, when it’s more treatable, saving more lives. To find out more and if you are eligible for a check visit https://swaglunghealthcheck.nhs.uk/

What is EUROPAC?

EUROPAC is a registry for families with histories of Familial Pancreatic Cancer and Hereditary Pancreatitis. The EUROPAC study also runs surveillance programmes for individuals who are deemed high-risk. Using the family history individuals provide, they can assess their lifetime risk of developing pancreatic cancer. Surveillance is offered on a yearly basis, and using a combination of CT, EUS, MRI and blood tests.

EUROPAC Researching Hereditary Pancreatic Diseases (europactrial.com)

In order to ensure people with inherited risk factors for pancreatic cancer have access to a high-risk surveillance pathway aligned to NG85 NICE guidance, NHS England has partnered with EUROPAC. This partnership will provide a route from the NHS into a surveillance programme run at participating NHS Trusts.

The nearest surveillance centre for patients in the SWAG Cancer Alliance region is:

• University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust.

For more ways to contact EUROPAC, please click on poster below.

SWAG EUROPAC Poster Final

Think Pharmacy 1st

Going to your local pharmacy offers an easy and convenient way to get clinical advice on minor health concerns, and now community pharmacies can offertreatment for seven common conditions without patients needing to see a GP, as part of a major transformation in the way the NHS delivers care.

Highly trained pharmacists at more than nine in ten pharmacies can now assess and treat patients forearache, impetigo, infected insect bites, shingles, sinusitis, sore throat, urinary tract infections (UTIs) for women aged 16-64 – without the need for a GP appointment or prescription.
Community pharmacy teams are highly-skilled, qualified health professionals who have the right clinical training to give people the health advice they need. Patients don’tneed an appointmentand private consultation rooms are available. Pharmacy teams can alsosignpost to other relevant local services where necessary.

Pharmacists have always helped patients, families and carers in their communities stay healthy and are well placed to offer treatment for health conditions. By expanding the services community pharmacies offer, theNHS is aiming to free up GP appointments and give people more choice in how and where they access care.

Don’t wait for minor health concerns to get worse – think pharmacy first andget seen by your local pharmacyteam.

For more information, http://nhs.uk/thinkpharmacyfirst

Did you overdo it in December?

Somerset Drug and Alcohol Service @SDASdigital (handle on their social media accounts) are here to help you make positive changes around drugs and alcohol with no cost to you.

Get support: mytp.me/sdas-making-changes

The NHS has lots of health information and guidance on how to stay well over the winter months. Winter is a busy time for the NHS and there are a huge range of services available, so knowing the best place to go to get the right help is really important.

Please visit: Winter 2023 – NHS Somerset ICB

The NHS Somerset MSK app is now available to The Meadows Surgery patients. It is a FREE, easy-to-use tool helping you to self-manage your muscle, bone and joint (MSK) injuries and conditions.

Patients can self-refer to the app, and use this either instead of or as well as an appointment at the practice.

To access the App, please click here: GetUBetter – Meadows

For more information, please see our GetUBetter page.