Binscombe Medical Centre
106 Binscombe
Godalming GU7 3PR
Tel: 01483 415115
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People with longterm health problems
Specialist Clinics
We have a range of clinics held at the surgery for certain longterm condiditons:
Sick day rules for diabetes
If you are sick with something like a tummy bug or a fever, then it can be hard to know how to manage your diabetes, especially if you are on insulin or medication like metformin. These helpful leaflets have been produced by the Royal Surrey County Hospital:
Sick day rules, Type 1 diabetes on 2 injections per day
Sick day rules, Type 1 diabetes on 4 injections per day
Diabetes Clinic
Dr O'Donnell heads up our diabetes care and runs a clinic jointly with one of our nurses on Wednesday mornings. Some people with diabetes require hospital follow-up but most of our patients are seen for a full review once a year in Dr O'Donnell's clinic, with interim reviews by their own doctor. We also have a chiropodist who sees patients at the practice for diabetic foot care.
Diabetes Resources
www.excarbs.com is a great website for advice on how to exercise safely with Type 1 diabetes
What to do if you are unwell with diabetes - leaflets for people with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes and how to manage your sugar levels if you are unwell.
Diabetes and Driving - FAQ fact sheet
Understanding Diabetes - a British Sign Language video
Beat Diabetes A free, interactive NHS resource for tackling type 2 diabetes
There are also several information leaflets about diabetes and diet on our downloads page.
Asthma Clinic
One of our nurses, Pippa, has a great deal of experience in the management of asthma, and she holds a nurse-led asthma clinic on Thursdays with both morning and afternoon appointments available. Our Physician Associate, Ella Cox, also has an interest in lung conditions and runs an asthma clinic on a Thursday as well as clinics for people with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. These clinics have been set up to help people with asthma manage their symptoms as well as possible. We recommend that most people with asthma come for a yearly review in the clinic. Please bring your inhalers with you for the clinic, and if we have ever given you your own plastic tube for measuring your FENO (exhaled nitric oxide) level, then please always remember to bring this with you. It's a great idea to keep it in the glove compartment of your car if you drive.
Asthma UK is a great resource for information on asthma, including this great page on the best way to use your inhalers.
How to use your inhaler
It's really important to use your inhaler in the right way, so that it works well. There are some great videos that demonstrate correct inhaler technique - follow the link to the inhaler devices below to watch the videos:
How to use a Metered Dose Inhaler
How to use an Easi-Breathe inhaler
How to use an Easyhaler inhaler
How to use a Handihaler Inhaler
How to use a NEXThaler Inhaler
How to use a Turbohaler Inhaler
COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) Clinic
Ella Cox, our Physician Associate has expertise in this area. She is happy to see people with this lung condition in any of her clinics, but also has some set appointments to review people with COPD. We use this clinic to help monitor the function of the lungs with special breathing tests called Spirometry, to monitor the effects of treatment and the use of inhalers. Please bring your inhalers with you whenever you see Ella for this.
Eczema and other skin conditions
Applying skin creams in the right way can be harder than it looks - and getting it right can make a huge difference to how effective the creams will be. There are some great videos provided by Guys and St Thomas' hospital.
If eczema keeps getting infected then regular baths with a small amount of Milton can be helpful - there is a good leaflet here about how to do this.
Family Planning Clinic
We also run a family planning clinic, which is a joint clinic run by Dr Pidgeon and one of our nurses. They have both received specialist training in family planning and can offer the whole range of contraception options including the use of coils and implants. Dr Grove also fits contraceptive implants.
All other longterm conditions are best managed by working with your doctor so that they have a good understanding of your condition and your health needs. We believe that this is best achieved by having good continuity of care, and so each patient at Binscombe has a named GP a the practice whom we call their 'usual doctor' so that as far as possible there is one doctor looking after you.
For some patients with complex needs it can be helpful to have a named 'back-up' doctor who also knows about you and could help look after you if your usual doctor is away. If you think you would benefit from this system then do speak to your usual doctor about it.
Resources
If you have a disability, the Surrey Disabled People's Partnership have a fantastic service offering help with advocacy, support and help with welfare advice and overcoming financial difficulties.
The Loseley Christian Cancer and Parkinson's Help Centre
This local Christian support group was set up by our former partner Chris Jagger, and meets weekly every Tuesday for fellowship, food and spiritual support.
Self Care Forum
The self-care forum is a really useful website full of resources relevant to people living with long-term health conditions and advice on both how to manage things yourself, and when to speak to a doctor.
There are free Self-Management courses to help people gain a better understanding of a long-term health problem and how best to manage it. Details can be found here.
Statins
Statins are often in the news and can be an important was of preventing heart disease and stroke, but who should take one? This patient information web page is really well designed to help explore this question in a way that makes sense!
Smoke Free App
We are getting very positive feedback from patients about a phone app called Smoke Free, and so we wanted to let more people know about it. It has been produced by the NHS and has lots of clever motivational ideas, like showing you how much money you are saving, motivational rewards you can aim for and tips on how to manage when you want that cigarette. The app can be downloaded with links here (or on the app store on your phone) and the full website is here.
