NHS Screening Programme sends out reminders to all women between the age of 25 and 64 when they are due a smear. If you think you may have missed your smear or unsure when you are due one, speak to the reception team who can advise you.
When you have your reminder, speak to the receptionists who will be able to arrange your smear with the nurses in one of our weekly smear clinics.
How often should you have a smear?
Women are offered screening at different intervals, depending on their age:
- Women should receive their first invitation for screening at 25
- Women aged 25-49 are invited for screening every three years
- Women aged 50-64 are invited for screening every five years.
- Women aged 65 or over are only screened if they have not been screened since they were 50 or have had recent abnormal test results
For first time advice for contraceptive needs please arrange to see one of the doctors during surgery times.
Follow-up contraceptive advice and treatment is carried out by our practice nursing staff. Queens Road Surgery undertakes implant insertions and removals. Please contact our Reception team if you require any further information.
Our Nursing Team manages our diabetic patients. You will be asked to attend on an annual basis for your review to be done. This includes a blood test and a foot check, once the blood results are back you will be invited to see the Team again for a review and a management plan.
Our Nursing Team manages our Long Term Conditions (LTC). You will be asked to attend on an annual basis for your review to be done.
Booking and antenatal clinics are run by the midwife. Once your pregnancy is confirmed please contact reception who can refer you to a midwife.
Pregnancy Care Planner
Before you are pregnant
Your pregnancy and labour
- 37-40 weeks pregnantHow the baby develops
- 0-8 weeks pregnant
- 9-12 weeks pregnant
- 13-16 weeks pregnant
- 17-20 weeks pregnant
- 21-24 weeks pregnant
- 25-28 weeks pregnant
- 29-32 weeks pregnant
- 33-36 weeks pregnant
- 40+ weeks pregnant
- Your health in pregnancy
- Common health problems
- Antenatal care and classes
- Choosing where to have your baby
- Labour and birth
- When pregnancy goes wrong
You and your baby
General pregnancy topics
To provide professional, accessible, high quality, comprehensive healthcare services that inspires confidence in our patients and our community.
Our Vision
- We aim to provide the best possible outcomes for our patients in a safe and welcoming environment. Our Doctors and staff are approachable, respectful and patient-centered
- We aim to be at the forefront of modern general practice, offering a wide range of services and facilities
- We aim to be a Centre of Excellence for teaching and training of medical students, GP Registrars and Nurses
- We aim to use technology smartly to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of our administration, patient contact and clinical activity
- We will continue to invest in our staff, diversifying and developing our skills and knowledge base to ensure that we have a highly skilled, resilient and adaptable work force to meet the needs of our patients and communities
- We aim to support the development through a greater understanding and treatment of disease through proactive engagement with research projects
- We will seek to collaborate and work in partnership to strengthen community links and respond to local, regional and national initiatives
Our Values
We are accountable:
We ensure we take responsibility for our actions, and are open and transparent to the people who use our service.
We are fair:
We are consistent in the way we deal with people, both patients and staff, we act courteously, show consideration, compassion and understanding valuing each person as an individual.
We are professional:
We strive to achieve a high level of medical care for our patients and responsive to medical need both for the individual and for the community as a whole. We maintain our professional learning and follow guidelines where appropriate to do so.
Our success is built upon the personal and professional achievement of everyone who works at Queens Road Surgery.
We are innovative:
We constantly review the service we provide and improve it when and where possible. We use all available resources, including technology to provide the best service we can.
We nurture innovation, lead on learning and development and embrace emerging technologies.
We are caring:
We will put our patients at the heart of all that we do.
We respect and value everyone for their contribution, we engage with the community and local resources where possible, we celebrate peoples’ differences and provide equality of opportunity for all without discrimination.
Patients will no longer arrange transport through their GP surgery. Please contact ESR Medical to book your transport on 0191 6500560.
You can self refer yourself in to outpatient physiotherapy services by completing the form below.
Patients with complex physiotherapy needs are required to discuss their requirements with their GP.
Self Help Advice - Lots of medical advice is available for many conditions. The practice has always used patient advice leaflets from www.patient.co.uk, which is a useful and up to date resource. This website also has mobile applications that can help you monitor your condition, or for other things like weight loss. Please view our 'Minor Illness' tab for more practical advice.
NHS England also has a website for self-care of long term conditions
Pharmacy First
Have you thought about asking your pharmacist before making an appointment? They are also a valuable source of help and advice, and recommended by NHS choices. Please consult this page for lots of practical advice for minor illness.
Free Prescriptions from your pharmacy WITHOUT seeing your doctor; consult the MINOR AILMENTS scheme.
Fit notes (Sickness Certification)
NHS services provide medical certification for your employer after one week of sickness absence. You do not need to contact your doctor for a certificate if you are off for less than a week, instead, you can get a Self-certificate from your employer, or download one here.
Stop Smoking Help and Advice
Did you know the BEST treatment for conditions like COPD is to stop smoking? So, no matter how many different inhalers, tablets and tests you have for COPD, the actual best treatment is something you can do yourself, perhaps with some help from the NHS Quit website or stop smoking clinic at the surgery. You can get a free Quit Kit by following the link.
Self-Referral
Some services can be accessed directly without seeing your doctor.Examples are MIND, the mental health charity, Talking Changes (psychological counselling), Physiotherapy, Drug and Alcohol Services, Stonham housing support.
Headspace meditation
Meditation has been shown to help people stress less, focus more, and even sleep better. Headspace is meditation made simple. We'll teach you the life-changing skills of meditation and mindfulness in just a few minutes a day.
You may request a suitably trained chaperone for any procedure, test
or examination.
Friends and family are not permitted to act as chaperones.
Please note - both male and female clinical team members work within the practice, if you have a preference, please ensure you discuss this when
you book your appointment.
For more information, please speak to reception.
A variety of skin ‘lumps and bumps’ can be removed here at Queens Road Surgery, without the need for a hospital referral. These include:
- troublesome skin tags
- warty lumps
- certain moles and cysts
If you wish to discuss having a minor surgical procedure, please make a routine appointment with any doctor or Nurse Practitioner at the surgery. They will assess you, and if your problem can be resolved with a minor operation here at Queens Road Surgery an appointment for this will be made for you.
Sometimes we may recommend a referral to a specialist rather than doing minor surgery here at the practice, if it is in your best interests.
Everyone is at risk of developing heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes or kidney disease, but these diseases can often be prevented.
NHS Health Checks will assess a persons risk and give personalised advice on how to reduce this. The new NHS Health Check is for adults in England between the ages of 40 and 74.
Please contact our reception team to make an appointment with a member of our nursing team.
Some services provided are not covered under our contract with the NHS and, therefore, attract charges. Examples include the following:
- Medicals for pre-employment, sports and driving requirements (HGV, PSV etc.)
- Insurance claim forms
- Passport signing
- Prescriptions for taking medication abroad
- Private sick notes
- Vaccination certificates
The fees charged are based on the British Medical Association (BMA) suggested scales. Our reception staff will be happy to advise you about them, along with appointment availability.
The current immunisation schedule in the UK is:
2 months:
- Diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), polio and haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib, a bacterial infection that can cause severe pneumonia or meningitis in young children) given as a 5-in-1 single jab known as DTaP/IPV/Hib
- Pneumococcal infection
- Rotavirus (oral vaccine)
- Meningitis Group B (MenB)
3 months:
- 5-in-1, second dose (DTaP/IPV/Hib)
- Meningitis Group C (MenC)
- Rotavirus (oral vaccine)
4 months:
- 5-in-1, third dose (DTaP/IPV/Hib)
- Pneumococcal infection, second dose
- Meningitis Group B
Between 12 and 13 months:
- Meningitis C, second dose
- Hib, fourth dose (Hib/MenC given as a single jab)
- MMR (measles, mumps and rubella), given as a single jab
- Pneumococcal infection, third dose
- Meningitis Group B
3 years and 4 months, or soon after:
- MMR second jab
- Diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis and polio (DtaP/IPV), given as a 4-in-1 pre-school booster
Around 12-13 years:
- Cervical cancer (HPV) vaccine, which protects against cervical cancer (girls only): three jabs given within six months
Around 13-18 years:
- Diphtheria, tetanus and polio booster (Td/IPV), given as a single jab
- Meningitis C (third dose)
In the unfortunate event that a person has passed away, there are three things that must be done in the first few days;
- Get a medical certificate from your GP or hospital doctor (this is necessary to register the death)
- Register the death within 5 days (8 days in Scotland). You will then receive the necessary documents for the funeral.
- Make the necessary funeral arrangements.
Register the death
If the death has been reported to the coroner (or Procurator Fiscal in Scotland) they must give permission before registering the death.
You can register the death if you are a relative, a witness to the death, a hospital administrator or the person making the arrangements with the funeral directors.
You can use the ‘Register a Death’ page on the gov.uk website that will guide you through the process. This will also explain the registration process for Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Arrange the funeral
The funeral can usually only take place after the death is registered. Most people use a funeral director, though you can arrange a funeral yourself.
Funeral directors
Choose a funeral director who’s a member of one of the following:
These organisations have codes of practice - they must give you a price list when asked.
Some local councils run their own funeral services, for example for non-religious burials. The British Humanist Association can also help with non-religious funerals.
Arranging the funeral yourself
Contact the Cemeteries and Crematorium Department of your local council to arrange a funeral yourself.
Funeral costs
Funeral costs can include:
- funeral director fees
- things the funeral director pays for on your behalf (called ‘disbursements’ or ‘third-party costs’), for example, crematorium or cemetery fees, or a newspaper announcement about the death
- local authority burial or cremation fees
Funeral directors may list all these costs in their quotes.
There is now a dedicated appointment line where your call will be answered confidentially by an experienced member of staff. They will book you an outpatient appointment where you can be seen within 48 hours. Tel: 0191 203 12 42, the line is open Mon-Fri 8am – 6pm.
Unfortunately we are unable to offer Travel Advice Appointments currently. Offering Travel Advice is a specialised area of medicine and at the moment none of our clinicians have up to date expertise in this area. Queens Road Surgery would not wish to give incorrect advice resulting in our patients coming to harm.
We understand that this may result in inconvenience for some patients and we are sorry about this.
Patients are therefore advised to seek travel advice privately and this is available at some local pharmacies and travel advice centres.
You can also check out the following websites for up to date information:
As well as being referred by the doctor our nurse, you can refer yourself to smoking cessation by calling 0800 772 0565 or visiting smokefreecountydurham.co.uk