Travel Vaccinations

From 1st April 2022 these will no longer be carried out by the Practice.

Patients should be asked to access information on what vaccinations are required, together with malarial and safe travel advice at Home - Fit for Travel. The website allows then to select their destination and then view the requirements for the destination before contacting the providers on the board website.

4 Travel Vaccines are available on the NHS (Typhoid, Hepatitis A, DPT and Cholera) at no direct cost to the patient. Any other vaccinations will incur a cost to the patient as at present

There is also a GGC webpage

https://www.nhsggc.scot/your-health/general-vaccinations/overseas-travel-vaccinations

There is further information about countries and vaccinations required on the links below: 

Europe & Russia	North America
Central America	South America
Caribbean	Africa
Middle East	Central Asia
East Asia	Australasia and Pacific

It is important to make this initial appointment as early as possible - a minimum of 6 weeks is required before you travel - as a second appointment will be required with the practice nurse to actually receive the vaccinations. These vaccines have to be ordered as they are not a stock vaccine. Your second appointment needs to be at least 3 weeks before you travel to allow the vaccines to work. If you are travelling in less than 6 weeks you can attend a private clinic for any vaccines required.

Some travel vaccines are ordered on a private prescription and these incur a charge over and above the normal prescription charge. This is because not all travel vaccinations are included in the services provided by the NHS.

Diazepam and Fear of Flying Policy

Carntyne Medical Centre does not prescribe sedatives like diazepam for fear of flying. This policy decision has been made by the GP Partners and is adhered to by all prescribers working in the practice. The reasons for this can be found below:

• 1) Diazepam is a sedative, which means it makes you sleepy, more relaxed and can significant delay your reaction times. If there is an emergency during the flight it may impair your ability to concentrate, follow instructions and react to the situation. This could have serious safety consequences for you and those around you.
• 2) Sedative drugs can make you fall asleep, however when you do sleep it is an unnatural sleep. This means you won’t move around as much as during natural sleep. This can cause you to be at increased risk of developing a blood clot (DVT) in the leg or even the lung. Blood clots are very dangerous and can even prove fatal. This risk is even greater if your flight is greater than four hours.
• 3) Whilst most people find sedative medications like diazepam have a relaxing effect, a small number of people can actually feel more agitated or even aggressive after taking it. Diazepam can also cause disinhibition and lead you to behave in a way that you would not normally. This could impact on your safety as well as that of other passengers and could also get you into trouble with the law.
• 4) According to the prescribing guidelines doctors follow, (known as the BNF), benzodiazepines like diazepam are not recommended for use in phobias. Your doctor would be taking a significant legal risk by prescribing against these guidelines. They are only licensed for short term use during a crisis in generalised anxiety. If this is the case, you should be getting proper care and support for your mental health and not going on a flight.
• 5) Diazepam and similar drugs are illegal in a number of countries. They may be confiscated or you may find yourself in trouble with the police if you are carrying any on arrival.
• 6) Diazepam stays in your system for quite a while. If your job requires you to submit to random drug testing you may fail this having taken diazepam.

We appreciate that fear of flying is very real and very frightening. A much better approach is to tackle this properly with a Fear of Flying course run by the airlines and we have listed a number of these below:

Easy Jet www.fearlessflyer.easyjet.com Tel: 0203 8131644British Airways www.flyingwithconfidence.com Tel: 01252 793250

• Virgin Tel: 01423 714900

Please also note that following the same advice above we are not encouraging the use of diazepam for dental appointments, hospital scans or other procedures.

Travelling in Europe

If you are travelling to Europe the EU has published useful information for travellers on the European website.

Non-NHS Services

We are able to offer a range of services not covered under NHS treatment. This includes:

• Completing insurance forms
• Medicals for work, driving and insurance companies
• Reports for lawyers and DSS
• Completing holiday cancellation forms
• Power of Attorney
• Vaccinations History

Many of these services incur a fee - details of these are available at reception.

Please note that these forms will not be completed during a routine consultation with the doctor.

Practice Nurse Clinics

The nurses see patients who are:

• Diabetic
• Asthmatic
• Hypertensive
• Have coronary heart disease, have had a stroke or suffer from epilepsy

They also offer the following:

• Blood taking
• Cervical screening
• Family planning advice

Healthcare Worker

Our healthcare worker is available by appointment on Wednesdays and Thursdays . She is trained to take blood, Blood pressure and height & weight measurements. She is not a trained nurse so cannot answer queries on medical or nursing issues.

Cervical Screening

This test is recommended for all women aged between 25-60 years who are or have been sexually active.  This test is usually carried out every five years. The cervical smear test checks to see if the cells that make up the surface of the neck of the womb (cervix) are developing normally. Any abnormalities in the cells will be identified via this test. Appointments are available with the Practice Nurse. Please let receptionist know that you will be attending for this test so that an appropriate appointment can be given.

Child Health

The health visitor’s aim is to promote good health of young children. At times they will visit you at home. They also hold Child Health Clinics, please contact practice for details.

Drug Problems

We offer a Methadone programme for patients with drug abuse problems. Appointments are available weekly with a Social Worker.

Test Results

If the doctor or nurse has told you to telephone for results of any tests taken please telephone between 11am and 11.30am. 

Please allow five working days before telephoning for the results of  blood tests and 21 days for X-ray results.

Results of cervical smears are posted to our patients as soon as they are available. This can take up to five weeks so do not worry if you have not received your letter before this time.

It is important to note that results can only be given to the patient themselves, unless the patient is under 16 years of age. Therefore, our nursing staff are required to ask you for particular details to ensure results are given to the correct person.

In addition you may be asked to make an appointment or speak with the doctor regarding the results of tests.