Benhill and Belmont GP Centre

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I make a request to my Practice?

To make a request to your Practice select the service that you require.

You will be prompted for information about your request. When you complete a request this will be sent to your practice. The system acknowledges that your request has been sent and will let you know what happens next.

The Practice handles the requests during their normal working day, i.e. if you send a request on Friday pm the Practice won’t normally see it until Monday morning.

How do I receive the responses from the Practice?

On some services, such as Ask the Practice a question and Ask the Doctor a question once the Practice has processed your request they will send you a response. This response will be sent to the email address that you have given in the form.

For security purposes the email will ask that you verify your identification. Once you have completed this the message from the surgery will be shown for you to read.

Security of your information

This service always uses fully encrypted connections, the same security as used in internet banking. If you look at the right of the address bar, you will see a small padlock icon. This indicates that you are using a secure link and that your data is encrypted.

As an additional measure your information is held encrypted until the practice need to view it. It is then sent to the practice still encrypted and only converted to readable text at the practice.

Tracking users

We track how you use our Digital Practice but we don’t collect or store your personal information (e.g. your name or address) while you’re browsing. This means that you can’t be personally identified.We use Google Analytics software to track:

The pages you visit

How long you use the site

How you got to the site and what links you clicked on.

We haven’t give Google permission to share this data with anyone else.

How is the Digital Practice updated?

We are continuously working on this site to make sure that the information is accurate and up to date. The digital practice is also continuously updated based on the results of user testing, feedback from members of the public and from your practice and other practices who are using this system.

Suggestions for improvement of the Digital Practice

We are always looking for ways to improve this service and would welcome your suggestions. Please send your comments to suggestions@siliconpractice.co.uk

Links to external sites

Digital Practice links to external organisations when that service is essential for helping a patient complete a task or when helping patients find a service.

Most head injuries are not serious. You do not usually need to go to hospital and should make a full recovery within 2 weeks.

Call 999 if someone has hit their head and has:

been knocked out and has not woken up
difficulty staying awake or keeping their eyes open
a fit (seizure)
problems with their vision
clear fluid coming from their ears or nose
bleeding from their ears or bruising behind their ears
numbness or weakness in part of their body
problems with walking, balance, understanding, speaking or writing
hit their head in a serious accident, such as a car crash

Also call 999 if you cannot get someone to A&E safely.

How to treat a minor head injury

If you do not need to go to hospital, you can usually look after yourself or your child at home.

It's normal to have symptoms such as a slight headache, or feeling sick or dazed, for up to 2 weeks.

To help recovery:

Do

hold an ice pack (or a bag of frozen peas in a tea towel) to the injury regularly for short periods in the first few days to bring down any swelling
rest and avoid stress – you or your child do not need to stay awake if you're tired
take paracetamol or ibuprofen to relieve pain or a headache – do not use aspirin as it could cause the injury to bleed
make sure an adult stays with you or your child for at least the first 24 hours – call 111 for advice if there's nobody who can stay with you

Don't

do not go back to work or school until you're feeling better
do not drive until you feel you have fully recovered
do not play contact sports for at least 3 weeks – children should avoid rough play for a few days
do not take drugs or drink alcohol until you're feeling better
do not take sleeping pills while you're recovering unless a doctor advises you to

See a GP if:

your or your child's symptoms last more than 2 weeks
you're not sure if it's safe for you to drive or return to work, school or sports

[Last reviewed 2018-04-04]

Benhill and Belmont GP Centre