HOW TO SPOT SEPSIS IN ADULTS
Seek medical help urgently if you (or another adult) develop any of these signs:
- Adults
- Slurred speech or confusion
- Extreme shivering or muscle pain
- Passing no urine (in a day)
- Severe breathlessness
- It feels like you’re going to die
- Skin mottled or discoloured
Children
- Is breathing very fast
- Has a ‘fit’ or convulsion
- Looks mottled, bluish, or pale
- Has a rash that does not fade when you press it
- Is very lethargic or difficult to wake
- Feels abnormally cold to touch
If you spot any of these signs, call 999 or go straight to A&E and Just ask: “could it be sepsis?”
A child under 5 may have sepsis if he or she:
- Is not feeding
- Is vomiting repeatedly
- Has not passed urine for 12 hours
If you spot any of these signs, call 111 or see your GP and Just ask: “could it be sepsis?”
How our appointment system works
The majority of our GP appointments are booked in advanced, however we have a triage system for urgent on-the-day queries. Nursing team appointments, musculoskeletal appointments and appointments with our mental health practitioner can be pre-booked. Some of our appointments are available to book on our new automated booking system.
Ideally we would urge you to make your requests through the Online Access Tool (OAT) found on our website www.larwoodhealthpartnership.co.uk
OAT allows you to:
- Request an appointment to see a clinician
- Order medication
- Request a Fit note
- Ask general queries
We have a dedicated team that deal with your requests between 8 – 5 pm Monday to Friday (except bank holidays)
All information you send on any online platform is automatically saved to your medical record so only send information relevant to yourself. One patient – one request. When sending photographs please ensure that these are not of intimate areas (the admin team will not save any photographs of an intimate nature to your records).
You can also phone your local surgery, but please be aware that our phone lines can be extremely busy and you may have to wait in a queue to be answered. There is never a queue online.
01909 500 233
Urgent Appointments
Larwood Health Partnership receive a high number of contacts every day so to ensure that we are able to safely deal with clinically urgent issues, we have to limit the number of routine queries after a certain time. In this instance you will either receive a message asking you to contact us on another day or an admin team member will ask you if your request is clinically urgent.
If you feel your query cannot wait we will add you to a clinician’s list, in some circumstances the clinicians may triage your query and if not deemed clinically urgent ask the admin team to contact you to rebook on another day.
To request a triage, please use our Online Access Tool or call the surgery on the above number.
Extended Access
We offer extended hours appointments across our sites throughout the week – see site opening hours for details. In addition patients can access appointments at practices elsewhere in Bassetlaw on Friday evenings, Bank Holidays and Sundays. These are bookable by contacting your usual surgery.
Home Visits
Whilst we encourage our patients to come to the surgery, where we have the proper equipment and facilities available, we do appreciate this is not always possible.
If you do need a home visit, please submit your request using our Online Access Tool or contact the practice before 12:00 noon.
You may only request a home visit if you are housebound or are too ill to visit the practice.
You will receive a call from a clinician to discuss your medical condition and decide how urgently a visit is needed. We have a highly skilled team of Paramedic Practitioners who will visit if appropriate.
If you require a visit from the Community Nursing Team, please visit their websites or call 01777 274422
When to call 999
Immediate action required: Adults – call 999 or go to A&E now for any of these:
- signs of a heart attack
chest pain, pressure, heaviness, tightness or squeezing across the chest - signs of a stroke
face dropping on one side, cannot hold both arms up, difficulty speaking - sudden confusion (delirium)
cannot be sure of own name or age - suicide attempt
by taking something or self-harming - severe difficulty breathing
not being able to get words out, choking or gasping - choking
on liquids or solids right now - heavy bleeding
spraying, pouring or enough to make a puddle - severe injuries
after a serious accident or assault - seizure (fit)
shaking or jerking because of a fit, or unconscious (cannot be woken up) - sudden, rapid swelling
of the lips, mouth, throat or tongue
British Sign Language (BSL) speakers can make a BSL video call to 999.
Deaf people can use 18000 to contact 999 using text relay.
Immediate action required: Children – call 999 or take your child to A&E now for any of these:
- seizure (fit)
shaking or jerking because of a fit, or unconscious (cannot be woken up) - choking
on liquids or solids right now - difficulty breathing
making grunting noises or sucking their stomach in under their ribcage - unable to stay awake
cannot keep their eyes open for more than a few seconds - blue, grey, pale or blotchy skin, tongue or lips
on brown or black skin, grey or blue palms or soles of the feet - limp and floppy
their head falls to the side, backwards or forwards - heavy bleeding
spraying, pouring or enough to make a puddle - severe injuries
after a serious accident or assault - signs of a stroke
face dropping on one side, cannot hold both arms up, difficulty speaking - sudden rapid swelling
of the lips, mouth, throat or tongue - sudden confusion
agitation, odd behaviour or non-stop crying
British Sign Language (BSL) speakers can make a BSL video call to 999.
Deaf people can use 18000 to contact 999 using text relay.
If you cannot call 999 for any reason
To get to A&E safely you should:
- get someone to drive you
- bring any medicines you take regularly with you, if you can
- take a mobile phone in case you need to call 999 on the way
When it’s not a life-threatening emergency
Urgent treatment centres can help with many of the most common problems people go to A&E for.
If you’re not sure what to do, NHS 111 can help
NHS 111 can help if you think you need medical help right now but you’re not sure what to do.
If you need to go to A&E, NHS 111 can book an arrival time so they know you are coming. An arrival time is not an appointment but helps to avoid overcrowding.
Check your symptoms on 111 online, or call 111 to speak to someone if you need help for a child under 5.
What happens when you call 999
The call handler will ask you some questions.
They will want to know things like:
- the location of the emergency (for example, the postcode or any landmarks)
- what has happened (the main symptom or reason for the call)
- your contact number (in case they need to call you back)
They will tell you when they have all the information they need.
If you are told you will get a callback, make sure there is someone there to answer.
Source: https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/urgent-and-emergency-care-services/when-to-call-999/
Reception Team
This helpful infographic explains why our reception team ask certain questions when you contact the practice. .
A Tip for your consultations
Think about what you want to say to the doctor and write down a few key points if it helps you to remember things that may be important.
If you contact us with a minor ailment, you may be navigated to a pharmacy close to you. They will be able to offer advice and make recommendations of over-the-counter medications.
Use the machine to take your blood pressure when you are at the surgery and hand in the results, so that you and the doctors can keep an eye on things.
Chronic disease reviews
We have systems in place to ensure that you are recalled on an annual basis. If you have a long term condition which requires medication you need to follow advice and attend appropriate tests and booked appointments. Attending these reviews allow us to monitor your condition and make adjustments to medications, etc.
Failure to do so may result in your condition getting worse and clinicians may reduce the number of tablets they are prepared to prescribe ie make your prescriptions weekly.
If we work together, we will get the best results.
Musculoskeletal Appointments
You can book in directly with musculoskeletal practitioners, who hold regular clinics at our Larwood surgery. Musculoskeletal practitioners can help with the following:
- strains or sports injuries
- All soft tissue injuries or sprains
- Arthritis – any joint
- Possible problems with muscles, ligaments, tendons or bone, eg tennis elbow, carpal tunnel syndrome, ankle sprains
- Spinal pain including lower back pain, mid-back pain and neck pain
- Spinal-related pain in arms or legs, including nerve symptoms, eg pins and needles or numbness
- Post-orthopaedic surgery (can differ between localities)
Changing or cancelling Appointments
If you would like to change/cancel an appointment which is over 72 hours away, please call us on 01909 500 233 and press option 1 to leave a message on our Cancellations line.
If you would like to change/cancel an appointment which is within 72 hours, please call us on 01909 500 233 and press option 6 to speak with our reception team.
You can also cancel appointments within the NHS App.