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RSV Vaccinations
APPOINTMENTS NOW AVAILABLE TO BOOK, PLEASE CONTACT THE SURGERY
How Does the RSV Vaccine Work?
Almost all older adults will have had several RSV infections during their life. A single dose of vaccine will help to boost protection as you reach an age group at highest risk of serious RSV infection.
Do I Need the Vaccine Annually??
No, a single dose is expected to give you good protection for a few years.
What is RSV?
Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is an infectious disease of the airways and lungs. RSV infection often causes symptoms similar to a cold, including cough, sore throat, sneezing
and runny or blocked nose. It can also make you become wheezy or short of breath and lead to pneumonia and other life-threatening conditions. There is no specific treatment, and most infections will get better by themselves. Every year thousands of older adults need hospital care for RSV, and some of them will die. RSV can be more severe in people with medical conditions such as heart or lung disease or a weakened immune system.
RSV infection is common in young children but is most serious for small babies and for older people.
How Do You Catch RSV?
RSV infections can occur all year round but cases peak every winter.
RSV can spread through coughs and sneezes. You can help to prevent the spread of the virus by covering your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze (ideally with
a tissue, or else into the bend of your elbow), and you can wash your hands frequently to reduce the risk of picking up the virus. Even with these measures it can be difficult to avoid RSV infection.
The best way to protect yourself is to have the vaccine.
Parking at Saundersfoot Medical Centre
To protect parking for our patients in Saundersfoot, there is now an ANPR system in place which is managed by an external company. If your visit to the Saundersfoot Surgery exceeds an hour you need to speak to reception who will register your number plate to stop a fine being generated. For anyone parking more than an hour during surgery hours and not attending the surgery a fine will be incurred, in addition any stay out of surgery hours will require utilisation of the pay and display option, otherwise a fine will also be incurred.
Pelvic Health Information Hub
One of the first steps in developing the new HDD Pelvic Health pathway has been the development of our new Pelvic Health Website.
The website brings together information about pelvic health conditions, advice, support and treatment options with links to general wellbeing resources.
Bowel Screening Wales
Bowel Screening Wales expands screening programme to include 51-54 year olds
As of Wednesday 4th October 2023, Bowel Screening Wales will start to invite people aged 51, 52, 53 and 54 for bowel cancer screening for the first time. It follows the lowering of the age from 60 to 58 in October 2021 and from 58 to 55 in October 2022.
The programme will be rolled out to the newly eligible age group gradually over the next 12 months.
Bowel cancer is the second most common cause of death from cancer in Wales. Over 2,000 people are diagnosed with bowel cancer every year in Wales, and it results in over 900 deaths. Evidence shows that screening people at a younger age enables more bowel cancers to be picked up at an earlier stage, when treatment is likely to be more effective and survival chances improved.
The screening test used is the highly effective Faecal Immunochemical Test (FIT), which is simple for people to use at home, requiring just one sample of poo. The test looks for tiny traces of blood (haemoglobin) in the sample, which are too small to be seen but can be an indicator of bowel cancer and benign polyps.
An invitation and test kit will be arriving via post to those who are eligible over the next 12 months. The home test kit is easy to complete and to send to the laboratory for analysis.
If you receive an invitation, please do take up the offer. It could save your life.
Quality Improvement Projects
We have an opportunity to improve outcomes and reduce healthcare demand by focusing on, and enabling, effective prevention of illness at key encounters with your GP surgery, such as new patient registrations and chronic disease management. We are also looking at ways that we can contribute to the decreasing of the carbon footprint of the NHS as a whole as we all play a part in this.
To work towards this, we are currently working on two Quality Improvement Projects. To learn more about our QI projects please click on the link below:
Diabetic Eye Screening
Recently diabetic eye screening has changed. Please click here to view what changes have occurred.
Ear Microsuction Self-Referral
Please click on the link below to phone to make an appointment for the Pembrokeshire Ear Microsuction Clinic.
Walking Group
Please click on the link below to see all types of routes within the Hywel Dda area.
FAST/NESA Campaign
FAST/NESA
We are pleased to announce that we will be running a bilingual FAST/NESA awareness campaign for Stroke beginning on the 27th April 2023 and running for four weeks.
Instead of FAST, we intend to use NESA (Welsh for NEXT), i.e. when stroke strikes, remember the NEXT steps.
Nam ar yr wyneb (facial impairment – it would make sense in Welsh)
Estyn – gallan nhw estyn eu breichiau uwchben eu pen a’u cadw yno (Reach – can they reach their arms above their head and keep them there)
Siarad – cael trafferth siarad (having issues with speech)
Amser – mae amser yn bwysig. Ffoniwch 999 yn syth (Time – time is of the essence. Phone 999 straight away)
April is Bowel Cancer Awareness Month. The new #KnowtheHigh5 campaign raises awareness of the five red flag symptoms of disease that should prompt you to see your GP straight away.
Someone dies of bowel cancer every 30 minutes in the UK. It’s the second biggest cancer killer but it shouldn’t be, because it is TREATABLE and CURABLE, especially if diagnosed early. That’s why knowing the symptoms is so important – it really could save your life.
The 5 red flag symptoms of bowel cancer are:
- Bleeding from your bottom and/or blood in your poo
- A persistent and unexplained change in bowel habits
- Unexplained weight loss
- Extreme tiredness for no obvious reasons
- A pain or lump in your tummy
Most people with these symptoms will not have bowel cancer. Other health problems can cause these symptoms too. But if you experience, one or more of these symptoms, or if things just don’t feel right, contact your GP straight away.
Join the largest study of melanoma ever
MyMelanoma is recruiting 20,000 melanoma patients to join the largest study of melanoma ever performed. A study designed to answer the most important current questions about melanoma and its treatment.
NHS Waiting Times
The Wales NHS 111 website now provides information on waiting times by speciality at each health board. Whilst this doesn’t tell individuals where they are on the waiting list it does provide up to date information on the range of current waiting times for the speciality and health board for which they are waiting.
Ultimately, this aims to help people to understand how long they may need to wait. This is similar to the system in place in England but goes further in providing a more realistic understanding of the range of wait times from the average to where the majority have waited up to.
Anyone can access this information from the 111 website and we would encourage you to use this tool through the course of your contact with patients as a means of managing expectations and concerns around waiting times. You may also wish to directly signpost individuals to this information when they contact your practice seeking information on planned care waiting times.
The information will be updated monthly and provides additional information to support people whilst they are waiting, so is a useful tool in helping patients understanding of the position.
Epilepsy
Do you have epilepsy or do you know someone who has epilepsy in Wales? Epilepsy Wales is here to support adults and children with epilepsy, their families and carers.
IGAS and Scarlet Fever
Mental Health Support for All.
A 24-hour phone line for well-being and mental health support for people living in Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire has gone live.
In June 2022, Hywel Dda University Health Board became the first health board in Wales to launch a dedicated mental health advice service, offering support for all age groups through the established 111 call line.
People will be able to access the service by phoning 111 and selecting option 2 where they will be put through to a mental health practitioner.
Cefnogaeth Iechyd Meddwl i Bawb.
Mae llinell ffôn 24 awr ar gyfer cymorth llesiant ac iechyd meddwl i bobl sy’n byw yn Sir Gaerfyrddin, Ceredigion a Sir Benfro wedi mynd yn fyw.
Ym mis Mehefin 2022, Bwrdd Iechyd Prifysgol Hywel Dda oedd y bwrdd iechyd cyntaf yng Nghymru i lansio gwasanaeth cyngor iechyd meddwl pwrpasol, gan gynnig cymorth i bob grŵp oedran drwy’r llinell alw 111 sefydledig.
Bydd pobl yn gallu cael mynediad at y gwasanaeth drwy ffonio 111 a dewis opsiwn 2 lle byddant yn cael eu trosglwyddo i ymarferydd iechyd meddwl.
Cervical Screening Wales
There are about 160 cases of cervical cancer diagnosed in Wales every year.
It is the most common cancer in people with a cervix under the age of 35.
Screening can pick up cell changes and, if needed, these changes can be treated to prevent a cancer progressing.
Screening is a test for cell changes that could lead to cancer if left untreated. Screening is not a test for cancer, but sometimes the test does pick up early cancers. Cervical cancers found early can be easier to treat.
Cervical Screening Wales is responsible for the NHS cervical screening programme in Wales, including sending invitations. We get your details from your doctor’s list, so it is important that your doctor has your correct name and address.
Cervical Screening Wales would like to reassure women and people with a cervix aged 24-49 that cervical screening is both safe and effective. They have created videos in both Welsh and English to show why cervical screening is important and to tell us about recent changes to the frequency of screening.
Yn Teimlo Allan o Wynt?
Feeling Breathless?
Early Diagnosis Saves Lives
