Welcome to our website which we have provided as a gateway to health and care information for patients, their families and those they care for who are registered at Haughton Vale and Thornley House Medical Centres.

Within the site there are sections with specific content for Haughton Vale and Thornley House. If you believe there is any information that we have not included and that you would like to see included please let us know by visiting the Patient Zone for each Practice and send us your comments. We value all the feedback that we receive.

It was January, it's 2010 and it was snowing......here's a video of pictures taken on Tuesday 5th January and how we are supporting patients despite the snow. This website is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week enabling YOU to get the best care you need, whereever you are, whenever you need it. Enjoy the video and tell us what you think of it by sending an e-mail to htmcpatient@nhs.net.

We thought we would ask Margaret Rickson aged 83, member of the Haughton Thornley Medical Centres Patient Participation Group if she would like to show us how easy it it to get access to your records. Watch the video and tell us what you think by e-mailing us on htmcpatient@nhs.net!

Records Access leaflet for patients

Here is a brief overview of some of the information you can access on this site.

On-line services - allows you to easily order repeat prescriptions, book appointments on-line or access your GP electronic health records.

Self Care for family and friends - is the section with sites for you to visit for you to get a better understanding of your own  and those you care for's health, it includes facilities to monitor your health and set reminders for appointments that you may have in the future. Perhaps the best way of understanding what all these resources do is to try them out to see how they may be helpful for you, members of your family or those you care for. Even better, why don't you describe how it is helping you and what you are regularly doing by taking a look at Dr Hannans blog on self care and seeing what others are doing too! Perhaps you might even like to share what you are doing yourself as this is likely to help and encourage others!

Important Messages - provides a place for useful or important messages that we would like to bring to the attention of our patients and their loved ones.

Practice Services - gives a framework for you to understand how services are organised in the NHS and how you can get the best from them especially when you have access to your GP electronic health records. We have described pre-consultation care which you should use prior to any consultation. We then describe 5 conditions (depression, diabetes, hypertension, eczema and heart disease), one normality (pregnancy) and one prevention (immunizations). Look at how we help you to undestand how to create your own care service. Talk to your doctor or nurse to ask for their advice in helping you to understand your care service too.

Stay Healthy - how many times have you been told you need to lose weight and or do more exercise, stop smoking or reduce your alcohol intake. Easy to say but so very hard to do. We all know we can all do better but where do we start and is there anything we can do for ourselves whilstg waiting for help from others? Here's you big chance to stay healthy!

4 Teenagers - Teenagers rarely come to the surgery but are often whizzes on a computer. So here we have compiled some of the best information avaiable on the net for teenagers (and other grownups!) to learn about the issues that matter to them. This section was built with the help of Sheila Caldecott and the Patient Participation Group who helped to devise a simple questionnaire. You can see the results too for the questionnaire and realise that you are not alone in thinking about some of these things! An essential read for everybody!

Carers - more and more of us are living longer but with a greater burden of ill-health as a result. Often we may be cared for by other family members. But did you know there is lots of help out there for carers too. This section helps to inform you of your rights and who else can help too. Remember - if you are a carer or being cared for then do inform the practice so that we can make a note of it in your records and the person you are caring for too. We know how important you are too!

Anaesthesia for patients - This section can be found on the right side of the screen. Many patients are referred to the hospital for surgery. But how much do you know about the different types of anaestheic that can be given. Not everybody needs to be put to sleep for surgery and often there are different ways to give an anaesthetic. Whilst your anaesthetist will guide you towards the best type of anaesthetiv for you and the type of surgery you are having done, this section helps you to understand some of the details of the different types so that you are better informed and hence less anxious prior to surgery. A must read for anybody who is due to go for surgery!

Records Access - highlights particular aspects of records access that you may wish to see from time to time eg the You Tube videos which highlight opportunities but also some of the challenges and issues. Watch Dr Hannan and his patient Yvonne Bennett as they try to explain some of the issues in case you suddenly come across something and are not sure how to deal with it.

Talks - our Practices are now holding regular talks in the Health Promotion Room  as we look to share with patients and the public, clinicians and managers aspects of healthcare, how care has been organized and perhaps looking ahead to future developments. We understand that not everybody is able to come to the meetings so where possible we provide an opportunity for you to watch a video of the meeting so that you might also share in the event. A great deal of time and effort goes into organising, preparing and delivering these talks. Now with the advent of the internet, we are able to share this with you and let others comment on the talks too. For example here is a blog on the recent talk on Dementia for you to see.

Quality Care - the NHS used to be assessed on the basis of waiting lists and meeting targets. It is now moving towards a culture of improving the quality of services. We have included a range of documents that explain this in more detail.

Other information - Some items that do not neatly fit into a particular area but are none-the-less just as important e.g. Sheila Caldecott who is a mother and patient at Thornley House has launched a questionnaire 'Speak for Yourself'  for teenagers to help to identify what needs they have and to try to understand what resources they use and find useful. If you are the parent of a teenager (even if not in our practice or even in Tameside) then why don't you click here to see a video of Sheila and also ask your children and their friends to fill out the questionnaire. We really do want to find out what teenagers need!

On the right hand side, you can see the contact details for the practice local health services, practice events or other activities happening locally including details of the next Patient Participation Group meeting and details of any local heathcare themes that we may be involved in eg Change for Life. Please visit the Practice site where you or your loved ones are registered for complete details of what we offer.

Who supplies the information for this website?
There are many sources of information now available to us all on the internet, what we have endeavoured to do with this site is to bring together reliable sources of information from NHS Choices (National Health Service), BBC Health as well as links to patient and carer organisations, charities and others that we feel can be trusted. Please refer to the terms and conditions of use and ALWAYS CONSULT A DOCTOR OR OTHER HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONAL IF YOU REQUIRE MEDICAL HELP

Please give us feedback
Please send us your comments or tell us abut your experience of using the website when you meet with your a GP, nurse or any other menber of our staff.

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