Widdrington Surgery is a dispensing practice with attached Pharmacy and Dentist in the Northumberland village of Widdrington.

Our surgery would like to reassure patients that we continue to offer a full choice of GP appointment types to our patients.

We offer face to face, telephone or 24/7 online access via our website – depending on your clinical need.

Your care may be provided by another health care professional in the surgery, again depending on your health care need.

We are working hard to support the NHS recovery from the Covid 19 pandemic.

Our vision

We aim to provide the highest quality service to our community.

Plans for new surgery to be built at Felton

Northumberland Health are delighted to announce that we have now been given the go-ahead to build our long-awaited replacement for our current Felton Surgery.

We are working with the developers to finalise the details of the build and we hope to have a new purpose-built building up and running before the end of 2024.  In the coming days we will be inviting patients and the wider public to an Engagement Event on Tuesday 31^st January at Felton Village Hall, between 4:00pm and 6:45pm, where plans will be on display and a representative from the developers will be available to answer questions.

Whilst this project is ongoing our services at the current Felton premises will remain as they are until such a time as the new building is ready for our use.

Widdrington Surgery – future improvements

We should also reassure you that the exciting plans for Felton in no way affect service at our Widdrington Surgery and we will continue to operate as this as usual.  We do also have plans for renovations and improvements at the Widdrington Surgery premises, which will be announced in due course.

Important message:

We apologise for the delay in answering calls at this moment in time, we are experiencing a higher than normal volume of calls.  During this time our current wait times can be longer than 30 minutes. We are in negotiations for a new telephone system to improve the service.

For routine matters you can submit a request using the e-Consult button, these requests will be responded to within 2 working days.  This service is available from:

Monday 8:00am to Friday 6:00pm.

Support Your Surgery

Your GP surgery needs your support so it can be there to support you:

Support Your Surgery

National Blood Bottle Shortage

There is no longer a blood bottle shortage.

Providing a Safe Place to Work and Visit

Please NEVER come to our surgery if you have respiratory or covid symptoms without discussing with one of the team over the telephone first.

Following the Government’s announcement regarding the easing of restrictions from Monday 19th July, Widdrington Surgery will still request all patients and visitors to the practice wear face coverings at all times within our site.

We further request that patients respectfully retain social distancing measures as before, using their good judgement, although the reminder signs will remain in place.

Whilst we acknowledge the steps taken to re-establish previous practices, we also recognise that the pandemic is still very much with us, particularly in our region, and the health, safety and well-being of our team and patients is, and will continue to be, of paramount importance.

We therefore kindly request that these measures are adhered to, face masks are worn and that a respectful space is given to each other.

We are currently operating on smaller numbers of our usual team in nearly every department, not taking into account annual leave or isolation which will reduce the team further.

We very much appreciate your continued support.

COVID-19 vaccination status

From 17 May 2021, people in England who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 can demonstrate their vaccination status for international travel. A full course is currently two doses of any approved vaccine. Vaccine status will be available from:

• the NHS App which you can download from app stores
• the NHS website (from 17 May 2021)

It may take more than a week for your identity to be checked and verified so you can use these services.

If you cannot access these online services, and you have had 2 vaccines, you can request a paper letter from the NHS by calling 119. Only call 119 if you had your second dose more than 5 working days ago. It may take 7 working days for the letter to arrive.

This practice is not able to provide you with a letter that shows your COVID-19 vaccination status.

When you’re planning your travel, check the latest information on demonstrating your COVID-19 status when travelling abroad on the gov.uk website. Make sure there is time to get  proof of your vaccination status before you leave.

Partnership News

We are proposing to merge Felton & Widdrington practices to form a single organisation. We aim to create provide services to our patients that are sustainable into the future. To find out more about the proposal and to view frequently asked questions please visit www.widdringtonsurgery.nhs.uk/news/contract-merger

COVID-19

The current Covid-19 pandemic has been a challenging time for us all and we wanted to reiterate that our utmost priority has been in making sure that our patients and staff are safe. It is essential that we continue to follow government guidelines.

Whilst we have continued to be open, we realise that there has been a real change in the way you now access your care and treatment.  We have been working hard to maintain access to appointments and we wanted to thank all of our patients for their patience and understanding during this time, we really appreciate your continued support and positive comments.

We will update you all as soon as we can.

We know that this year has been a particularly tough one for everyone as we all learn to live with Covid-19 (Coronavirus) and it is great news that there are now three approved vaccines, two of which are being used to vaccinate our most vulnerable patients.

We are working through the nationally set priority lists to invite our patients for their vaccine in order. We have now vaccinated our care home residents and the majority of our over 75yrs patients.

Thank you for allowing us to contact you to make your appointments, please be assured that as soon as we are made aware of the next delivery we are contacting you directly to book these appointments.

There is a lot of planning happening at the moment and we will contact you when it’s the right time to come forward, so please don’t seek a vaccine before then.

It is really important to continue to follow all the social distancing and hand hygiene guidance, which will still save lives.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Following extensive trials, the first safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine has been approved in the UK and is now available to priority groups.

Vaccinations are being delivered according to priority groups identified by the Joint Committee of Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The vaccinations may not take place at your GP practice, but rather a local vaccination service (led by GPs, practice nurses and community pharmacists) who are responsible for delivering the vaccine to people in your community.

When it is the right time for you to receive your vaccination, you will receive an invitation to come forward. This may be via the phone, or through a letter either from your GP or the national booking system.

We know lots of people will be eager to get protected but we are asking people not to contact us to get an appointment as you will not be able to get one until you are contacted.

COVID-19 Vaccine FAQs for patients

COVID 19 Information for Our Patients (October 2020)

How to contact your GP and get the help and care you need

As a result of Covid-19, the way patients are accessing our GP practice has had to change. Whilst we appreciate that this can be frustrating and unsettling at times, we need to make sure that all our staff and patients are kept safe. The information we are providing to help you contact us and continue to access health and care services, is to ensure you are kept as up to date as possible on any changes in the way you may do so.

What to do if you need to contact us

If your needs are non-urgent, we are asking all adult patients to please contact us via the e-consult service on our website in the first instance. You can contact your GP practice and get a reply within two working days. You can also request medication, sick notes and bloods results through this service.

For health care needs regarding children, urgent problems or for those patients who are unable access our online services, we ask that you telephone the practice and we will answer your call as soon as possible. We will ask for a brief summary of the problem which will help us direct you to the most appropriate member of the GP practice team.

Please note that your consultation may not need to be with a GP. It may be that the care/advice you need can be given by another member of the practice team.

Where possible and appropriate, consultations will be conducted either online or via telephone. If a face-to-face appointment is required and you need to visit the practice, please wear a face covering (unless exempt) when you arrive.

Face-to-face appointments

Your temperature will be taken on arrival and you will also need to sanitise your hands. Please be aware that you will need to be granted access by a member of the practice team.

We would appreciate your co-operation in ensuring you do observe social distancing while in the surgery. We have clear signage to guide you. You are asked to wear a face covering if you need to attend the surgery in person.

If you have any coronavirus symptoms including a high temperature, new, continuous cough or a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste please DO NOT come to the surgery. You must stay at home along with anyone you live with and anyone in your support bubble. Only leave home to get a test. Self-isolate until you get your result.

We are here for urgent medical needs

Please don’t delay in contacting us if you have an urgent medical need. We are here for you and your family.

You can also get urgent medical advice online from 111.nhs.uk or by calling 111. For life-threatening emergencies please call 999 or go straight to A&E.

When to self-isolate

If you have symptoms of COVID-19, however mild, you must self-isolate for at least 10 days from when your symptoms started. Please do not come to the surgery. You should arrange to have a test to see if you have COVID-19.

If you are not experiencing symptoms but have tested positive for COVID-19, you also must self-isolate for at least 10 days, starting from the day the test was taken.

If you develop symptoms during this isolation period, you must restart your 10-day isolation from the day you develop symptoms. If you live with others, all other household members must stay at home and not leave the house for 14 days. The 14-day period starts from the day when the first person in the household became ill or if they do not have symptoms, from the day their test was taken.

High risk groups

If you are in a high risk group, you can still go out provided you are well but you should:

• Maintain two metres distance from people outside your support bubble
• Avoid crowded spaces
• Wear a face covering in shops and other enclosed spaces
• Avoid touching your face
• Wash your hands carefully and more frequently than normal
• Use sanitiser outside your home (where available) especially as you enter a building and after you have had contact with surfaces.

Some useful links to information about shielding, face coverings, self-isolation, testing and staying safe outside your home

• Shielding and protecting those who are clinically extremely vulnerable
• How to wear face masks
• How to get a self-isolation note for work
• How to get a test or phone 119
• How to stay safe outside your home 
• Stay at home guidance
• Latest statistics for Northumberland
• Find out how many confirmed cases are there in your area 

Covid – Ventilation

New short film released by the government shows how Coronavirus lingers in enclosed spaces and how to keep your home ventilated:

https://vimeo.com/479780008/cb6c43b496

Widdrington Surgery was established 1938 by Dr Danny O’Driscoll.

Dr Finnbarr O’Driscoll took over from his father and was the village doctor for more than 30 years.

The surgery is a four doctor practice including a husband and wife team – Dr Waite who joined in 2001 and Dr Lees who joined in 2005 when Dr O’Driscoll retired.

Widdrington has been accredited as a GP training practice and will have attached to it one or more qualified doctors training to specialise in General Practice.

We are a Dispensing Practice with an attached Pharmacy. This means that all our patients are able to pick up their medication from the surgery if they wish.

Our additional services include: Counselling, Smoking Cessation (remote) and Phlebotomy,

Northumbria services: Warfarin, Diabetic Dietician and Podiatry,

Harrogate Services: District Nurses, Midwife, Health Visitor.

Our Zero Tolerance Policy is shown below:

Zero Tolerance Policy

Our Practice boundary is shown in the map below:

Practice Boundary