Services

In addition to consultations with a doctor, Advanced Nurse Practitioner or Nurse, we also provide the following: 

• Cervical smears
• Contraceptive services - including Nexplanon implant, IUCD and Mirena (coils)
• Child health surveillance
• Maternity services
• Methadone substitution programme
• Minor surgery
• Quality of Life Clinic - to monitor patients with chronic illnesses.
• First Contact Physiotherapist service - dealing with a range of MSK complaints - our receptionists will let you know if this appointment is right for you
• Link Worker Service - helping you with things such as housing, finances or feeling lonely
• Pharmacist service - helping with questions about the medicines you take 
• Listening Service - a safe place to talk with a fully trained listener if you are over 18. You can speak to them about things including ill health, bereavement, relationship breakdowns, unemployment or changes in your life that feel out of control 

Blood tests, blood pressure checks, wound care, ear care and removal of stitches/staples is available at Community Treatment and Care (CTAC) Clinics or from the CTAC staff who are located in our practice - to get an appointment at the CTAC Clinics, please call 01224 550200

Practice Leaflet

Our Practice Leaflet gives lots of information about the practice and our services - to view it please click here

Inhealthcare Blood Pressure Service

This service is available for patients with long term chronic conditions including high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease. Your practice nurse or practice pharmacist will let you know if it is suitable for you, or you can ask about it at your next Quality of Life telephone review.

You can use the NHS Connect Me Blood Pressure (BP) monitoring system at home and send the readings in by text message to the GP surgery when asked by NHS Connect Me. Find out more about the NHS Connect Me Blood Pressure (BP) monitoring system below.

NHS Connect Me Blood Pressure Monitoring

What is NHS Connect Me?

NHS Connect Me, combines the expertise of healthcare professionals with the convenience of supporting patients to easily send in their blood pressure readings from wherever they are, while helping them to keep their blood pressure at safe levels. NHS Connect Me is supplied by Inhealthcare.

You can choose to use the Inhealthcare app, text messaging or an automated phone call and NHS Connect Me will sends prompts to patients, reminding them to check and submit their blood pressure readings.

The program will collate the readings provided by you and can be accessed by the clinician at any stage of the process.

NHS Connect Me can also send you advice to act on or ask the patient health related questions and give health promotion messages.

The service, including any ‘SMS’ text messaging, is completely free of charge to patients.

Diabetes In Grampian

Information and links for local services and resources for diabetic patients and their carers can be found on the new Diabetes In Grampian website:

https://www.nhsgrampiandiabetes.scot.nhs.uk

Patients with Type 2 Diabetes will usually be offered at least one appointment a year for a check up at the practice. The diabetic clinics are led by the practice nurses and supported by the GPs. 

Patients with Type 1 Diabetes are usually seen by the hospital diabetic clinic.

My Diabetes My Way

Did you know you can now see and manage your own diabetes results and treatment plan online? 

Visit https://mydiabetesmyway.scot.nhs.uk/ to register or log in. 

Prediabetes

Prediabetes is when your blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not high enough to be considered in the diabetes range. It can also be called 'impaired glucose tolerance' or 'impaired fasting glucose'. 

It may seem reassuring that you do not have diabetes but it does increase the likelihood of going on to develop diabetes. The good news is that you can reduce the risk of diabetes if you can improve your diet, do more exercise and lose weight.

For more information and support, please visit the Diabetes In Grampian website: https://www.nhsgrampiandiabetes.scot.nhs.uk/prediabetes/ 

What are the benefits of using NHS Connect Me to Monitor Blood Pressure?

• NHS Connect Me gives us the opportunity to monitory our blood pressure remotely, reducing the number of face-to-face appointments required to diagnose, titrate, or monitor hypertension.

• NHS Connect Me gives you the opportunity to have your blood pressure monitored by the practice without having to attend the surgery, reducing inconvenience and travel cost.

• NHS Connect Me can remove white coat syndrome, optimising readings, and clinical decision-making.

• NHS Connect Me allows you to understand your own condition and make lifestyle changes or seek medical advice as required to allow you to maintain longer, healthier lives. In short it can motivate you to self-manage.

• Studies show long term hypertension monitoring at home encourages medication compliance and therefore reduces the risk of stroke and heart attack.

A nationally produced video to support the NHS Connect Me programme can be viewed via the following link: NHS Connect Me   

The British Heart foundation also provides a ‘how to’ video to Managing your Blood Pressure at home: Managing your blood pressure at home

We encourage patients to purchase a home blood pressure device for self-management of their blood pressure monitoring. Further information on validated home blood pressure monitors can be found on The British and Irish Hypertension Society website

Leaflets and Forms

WMG Connect Me Blood Pressure Service Enrolment Form

General Information leaflet for Using Inhealthcare

Managing Your Health at Home using Inhealthcare

Blood Pressure Patient Guide

Hints and Tips for Monitoring Your Blood Pressure

Blood Pressure Service Shared Management Plan

NHSG Inhealthcare Privacy Notice

Physiotherapy

Woodside is delighted to offer a First Contact Physiotherapist (FCP) service.

FCPs have skills in the assessment and management of Musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions and assess patients with soft tissue, muscle and joint pain and to decide on the most appropriate management of their symptoms. FCP’s are trained to fully assess, diagnose and give first-line treatment and can also refer patients for a course of physiotherapy, order investigations (including blood tests or X-Ray) and make referrals to hospital services using the same pathways as GPs if these are needed.

To be able to use this service you need to be over the age of 16 years of age and have a MSK problem including any joint, muscle, ligament, tendon, sports injury etc. Your initial assessment will be over the phone where a full history can be taken and if deemed necessary a Face to Face appointment can then be arranged.

If you have developed pain within 1-2 weeks with no serious injury or trauma or worrying symptoms, please do self-manage your condition with simple over the counter painkillers, ice/hot packs and try some self help advice and exercises found on the website link below. If your symptoms are no better after 1-2 weeks please contact us to book in with the FCP.

Please visit Condition Self-Help - (scot.nhs.uk) for physiotherapy advice, exercises and details of how you can self-refer. 

Video Link - for a video explaining When to see your First Contact Physiotherapist, please click here

Test Results

When you get a test, you will be told how long you should expect to wait for the results. To get these results, please call our reception team between 10am - 12pm and  2:00pm - 6:00pm.

Our reception staff are not qualified to comment on results but will pass on any comments made by the clinician who has looked at the result.

It is your responsibility to call for your results and make any necessary follow-up appointment. If the follow-up appointment is with a doctor,  it is best that you make your appointment with the doctor who requested the test as this provides continuity of care.

Please note that we do have a strict policy regarding confidentiality and data protection. We will only give out results to the patient who has had the test unless that person has let us know that we can provide them to someone else or they are not capable of understanding them.

Blood Tests

A blood test is a sample of blood taken for testing in a laboratory. Blood tests have a wide range of uses and are one of the most common types of medical test. For example, a blood test can be used to:

• assess your general state of health
• confirm the presence of a bacterial or viral infection
• see how well certain organs, such as the liver and kidneys, are functioning

A blood test usually involves us taking a blood sample from a blood vessel in your arm. The usual place for a sample is the inside of the elbow or wrist, where the veins are relatively close to the surface. Blood samples from children are most commonly taken from the back of the hand.

You can find out more about blood tests, their purpose and the way they are performed on the NHS Choices website.

Urine Samples

You may be asked to hand in a sample of urine for testing. Only samples requested by a doctor or nurse will be accepted at reception.

Please make sure that your sample is in an appropriate container with your name and date of birth clearly marked on it. You can complete THIS SLIP to hand to Reception along with your sample or else be given a slip to complete when you come into the Practice

Mental Health Issues

There are lots of services in Grampian and Scotland which offer support with mental health issues. 

Click here for information on useful phone numbers and websites

Listening Service

The practice offers a Listening Service to give you the opportunity to speak about what troubles you, makes you anxious or upset. To read more information about the service please click here. To book an appointment with the service - please just call the practice. 

Sleepio is a digital programme designed to help people who have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep through the night. 

It is an online programme based on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). The programme is free for patients in NHS Grampian.

Over 6 weekly sessions, you will learn tools and techniques to help you get your sleep back on track. 

To get started, go to www.sleepio.com/nhs 

For more information click here

Patient information on contraception is available on the NHS Inform website here: https://www.nhsinform.scot/healthy-living/contraception

There are also some information leaflets below.

If you would like to discuss contraception, please phone reception to book a telephone appointment with a GP. 

Click here for a self help guide to emergency contraception

Patient Information Leaflets

Different ways of taking the combined pill

Contraceptive Implant Guide

IUS Information (Mirena/Jaydess Coil)

Sayana Press - Contraceptive Self Injection

POP Guide - The 'Mini Pill'

IUD Information (Copper Coil)

Financial wellbeing – financial support

Aberdeen City Council has a very useful list of financial support resources on its website.  For more information visit https://www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/services/help-cost-living or click on the below links.

Get help with benefits and income

• Help with fuel costs

• Get benefits and money advice

• Apply to the Scottish Welfare Fund

• Times and places to collect emergency food

• Support for those affected by redundancy

• Citizens Advice Scotland

• Benefits Calculator

• Support Line

• Cfine Pantries

• Support for those affected by redundancy

Get help with housing costs

• Furniture leasing scheme

• Homelessness: advice and support

• Council Tax Reduction

• All Council Tax discounts and exemptions

• Reduced broadband and mobile for those on benefits

• Manage your rent account

• Housing repair tutorials

• Warm Spaces

Support for young people

• Apply for free bus travel

• Student exemption

• Mental Health Support for young people

• Education maintenance allowance

• Free internet and computer access

• Access to period products

• Modern Apprentices

• Warm Spaces

Support for older and disabled people

• Sheltered housing information

• Apply for sheltered housing

• Apply for free bus travel

• Disability benefits

• Apply for disability banding relief online

• Services for people with a disability

• Apply for a Blue Badge

• Disabled person relief

• Apply for a disabled parking space

• Carer's benefits

Support for families and children

• ‘Fit Like? Family Wellbeing Hubs

• Child and family benefits

• Scottish Child Payment Bridging Payments

• Apply for free school meals and School Clothing Grant

• Child Poverty Action Group - Welfare rights in Scotland

• Pay for out of school childcare

• Times and places to collect emergency food

• Access to period products

• Pet Aid from the Scottish SPCA

• Apply for free bus travel

• Abernecessities

• Cash for Kids

Get help with housing costs

• Furniture leasing scheme

• Homelessness: advice and support

• Council Tax Reduction

• All Council Tax discounts and exemptions

• Reduced broadband and mobile for those on benefits

• Manage your rent account

• Housing repair tutorials

• Warm Spaces

Support for businesses

• Accessing business support

• Jobs, careers and employability

• ABZ Works

• Cost of doing business: Guidance for Businesses

Mental Health and Wellbeing Support

• Your mental health & wellbeing

Get help with energy

• Help with fuel costs

• Home energy savings

• Warm Spaces

Requests for Reports, Medicals and Letters

Some services provided are not covered under our contract with the NHS (which provides medical care only) and a fee is charged for these. Examples include the following:

• Medicals for pre-employment, sports and driving requirements  including all DVLA Forms- HGV, PSV etc
• Insurance claim forms
• Private sick notes - including schools and further education
• Requests for letters - including requests for confirmation of registration, conditions etc

Our team will be happy to advise you how you request these, and what the fee will be. All fees are to be paid ahead of the report/letter etc being produced

DVLA Requests

DVLA have requested that we don't complete work for them until they have confirmed that they are happy to pay the charge. When we receive a request for a DVLA report we quickly e-mail an invoice to them and ask for their agreement but, unfortunately, can be waiting for some weeks for them to return to us. We want to reassure patients that, once their agreement is received - we place the report with a GP to complete as soon as possible. Any  queries about the delays in getting DVLA approval need to be directed to them. 

Letters - To Whom it May Concern

If you want to request a letter from the surgery - please fill out a request form (click here to get the form) and arrange to pay the fee ahead of the letter being produced. 

Why do GPs charge fees?  Your questions answered.

Isn't the NHS supposed to be free? 

The National Health Service provides most health care to most people free of charge, but there are exceptions. Sometimes a charge is made to cover some of the cost of treatment, for example, dental fees.  In other cases it is because the service is not covered by the NHS, who understandably do not cover costs for work which isn't providing clinical care to a patient. 

Surely the doctor is being paid anyway?

It is important to understand that GPs are not employed by the NHS.  They are self employed, and they have to cover their costs - staff, buildings, heating, lighting etc - in the same way as any small business.  The NHS pays the doctor for specific NHS clinical work, but for non-NHS work the fee has to cover the practice costs (which includes admin and doctor time).

Why does it sometimes take my GP a long time to complete my form?

Time spent completing forms and preparing reports takes the GP away from the medical care of their patients.    GPs have a very heavy workload and paperwork takes up an increasing amount of their time.

I only need the doctor's signature-what is the problem?

When a doctor signs a certificate or completes a report, it is a condition of remaining on the Medical Register that they only sign what they know to be true.  Therefore, in order to complete even the simplest of forms, the doctor may need to check the patient's entire medical record.  Carelessness or an inaccurate report can have serious consequences for the doctor, with the General Medical Council or even the Police.

What will I be charged?

We will let you know in advance of completing any work whether there is a charge for it and, if so, how much that is. Individual Practices set their own charges but the BMA gives guidance on suggested fees for a range of private work

Do not expect your GP to be able to complete forms with very short timescales - if we are able to complete a request urgently and have to make special arrangements to do this - there will be an additional cost.