As of 1st October 2024 the prescription processing window will be changing from 5 working days to 4 working days.

Please ensure you allow time for this when requesting your repeat medications.

Leiston Surgery will be participating in the Autumn 2024 Covid Vaccination campaign, all eligible patients will be offered their Covid vaccine during their flu vaccination appointment. If you already have an appointment booked for you Flu vaccine there is no need to contact the surgery. To book an appointment or check eligibility please contact reception on  01728 830526 after 2pm.

From 1st September 2024, those who turn 75 and those age 75 to 79 will be eligible for a free vaccine to protect them from respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). RSV can cause pneumonia which can be serious.

For more information on the RSV vaccine you can read this leaflet here: www.gov.uk/government/publications/respiratory-syncytial-virus-rsvvaccination-for-older-adults or speak to your practice nurse, GP or health team.

From 1st September 2024, pregnant women can have a free vaccine in each pregnancy, to protect their babies against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). RSV is a common virus which can cause a lung infection called bronchiolitis. In small babies this condition can make it hard to breathe and to feed.

For more information on how the RSV vaccination can protect your baby, please visit A guide to RSV vaccination for pregnant women - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) or speak to your midwife, maternity service or GP practice.

Book your Flu jab today for:

Saturday 5^th October 2024

Saturday 19^th October 2024

Saturday 2^nd November 2024

We will also be holding mid-week Flu clinics after these dates.

These are by appointment only:

Please telephone 01728 830526 AFTER 2pm to make an appointment

Flu Eligibility

From 1^st September 2024:

Pregnant women, all children aged 2 or 3 on 31^st August 2024 and children in clinical risk groups aged from 6 months to less than 18 years

From October 2024:

Adults aged 65 and over, those in a clinical 'at risk' group (an ‘at risk’ group includes conditions affecting the; lungs, heart, liver or kidneys, immunosuppression, chronic neurological diseases, diabetes and those with a BMI over 40), close contacts of immunocompromised individuals, those in care homes, carers and frontline workers in a social care setting.

After 26 years affiliation with The Leiston Surgery Dr Blades will be leaving as a Partner and as a GP at the end of September 2024.

Message to patients from Dr Blades:

"It has been a tremendous privilege to have been a GP to the people of Leiston for so long. The surgery has been through highs and lows over the years and it now seems the right time to leave with the future in the very capable hands of the existing and new partners.

I know you will continue to give them and all the hard working staff here your continuing support."

Leiston Surgery is pleased to welcome a new partner who will be joining our team.

Dr Daniel Jones will be joining us on 2nd September 2024 working on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

We have introduced a new telephone system called 'GP Voice', a cloud based telephone system that is designed to greatly improve patient experience at the practice during the very busy times.

GP Voice allows callers the option to either stay in their position in the call queue, or have the system call them back when they get to the front of the queue to avoid patients having to wait for lengthy times on the line.

We have also introduced a designated line for appointment cancellations, we hope this will improve appointment availability by reducing the number of patients who do not attend their booked appointments.

We hope that this new system will improve our booking process and reduce wait times on the phones, therefore improving patient experience.

Unfortunately due to strict medication storage regulations we regret to inform you that we are stopping our prescription collection service from Westleton Post Office as of 1st June 2024.

Following this date you will be able to collect your medication from either our Yoxford branch surgery, or the main surgery in Leiston which are open the following days/times

Yoxford Surgery: Monday and Fridays 10:00am-12:00pm

Leiston Surgery: Monday through to Friday 8:00am-6:30pm

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and would like to thank you in advance for your understanding.

The prescription charge is set to increase to £9.90 per prescription item from 1st May 2024.

For support with health costs please visit the NHS website as it gives information for patients on how to save money with a prescription prepayment certificate (PPC).

Your GP, nurse or pharmacist will not generally give you a prescription for certain medicines that are available to buy in a pharmacy or supermarket, even if you qualify for free prescriptions. This applies to treatments for these conditions:

• Acute sore throat
• Minor burns and scalds
• Conjunctivitis
• Mild cystitis
• Coughs, colds and nasal congestion
• Mild dry skin
• Cradle cap
• Mild irritant dermatitis
• Dandruff
• Mild to moderate hay fever
• Diarrhoea (adults)
• Dry eyes / sore tired eyes
• Mouth ulcers
• Earwax
• Nappy rash
• Excessive sweating
• Infant colic
• Sunburn
• Infrequent cold sores of the lip
• Sun protection
• Infrequent constipation
• Teething / mild toothache
• Infrequent migraine
• Threadworms
• Insect bites and stings
• Travel sickness
• Mild acne
• Warts and verrucae
• Haemorrhoids
• Oral thrush
• Head lice
• Prevention of tooth decay
• Indigestion and heartburn
• Ringworm / athletes foot
• Minor pain, discomfort and fever (e.g. aches and sprains, headache, period pain, back pain)

Leiston Surgery is pleased to welcome two new members of staff to our clinical team:

Joseph Morrice - Physician Associate, joining us from 20th March 2023

Dr Charlotte Ridout - Salaried GP, joining is from 17th April 2023

Like many surgeries across the country, we are struggling to recruit GPs and at times our staff can only treat medical emergencies during the week.

However, we can offer evening and weekend appointments which are covered by colleagues who work across the county to provide this out-of-hours service.

Appointments are available from 6.30pm – 8.00pm Monday to Friday and 9.00am – 5.00pm on Saturdays.

To book an appointment during these times, please call the surgery on 01728 830526.

Appointments are available with practice nurses, nurse prescribers and doctors.

Home visits can also be arranged. 

All appointments are face-to-face and will be offered at the following sites:

• Wickham Market
• Ipswich
• Felixstowe
• Eye

Firstly we would like to thank you for all the support you have given us over the last few years and especially during the COVID pandemic.  We have been through a difficult time and the challenges and repercussions continue to have an impact on the surgery and the community as a whole.

We have had lots of staff changes at the surgery in all departments and this has led to some challenges to maintain the high quality service we have provided and wish to continue to provide.  We have seen unprecedented levels of demand, in part related to the COVID pandemic and the long term effects this has on communities and patients alike but also due to the increase in our list size which has grown from 6,300 patients 2 years ago to over 9,200 patients.  This significant rise has put our services under pressure despite our significantly increased levels of staffing.

We have some upcoming changes to the clinical staff with the addition of a paramedic and a new Physicians associate as well as a new practice Pharmacist but unfortunately one of our newly appointed salaried GPs, Dr Badawy, has left the surgery to move north with his family and it is with much regret that Dr Pai is also leaving us to work closer to home in Ipswich.  We are constantly trying to recruit new GPs but as you are aware there is a national Doctor and GP recruitment crisis and we are seeing these pressures amplified in more rural areas such as ours.  We continue to have advertisements out and remain hopeful that we will recruit some more GPs soon.

As a result of the upcoming changes to the GP workforce we will have to put some temporary measures in place to be able to safely and effectively manage the amount of demand that we are facing without impacting patient care. We are discussing these measures internally and with our Patient Participation Group to ensure that we can continue to provide high levels of patient care until we have a full clinical and managerial team working at Leiston Surgery.  Once we have clarified the changes we will share them widely with the community.

As ever we are grateful for all the support given to us by our patients and community but would ask for more patience and perseverance during this difficult time.  We would particularly ask that patients remember that the surgery is always doing its best for the patients and that our staff should be treated kindly and with respect. Our staff are working under extreme pressures and continue to go above and beyond the call of duty however unfortunately at present they are being subjected to rude, abusive and aggressive behaviours. We understand that at times patients can feel frustrated if they feel their needs are not being met in an adequate and timely fashion but this should not be an excuse for some of the behaviours we are seeing.  We would ask for the same courtesy and respect you would offer a friend or family member who is trying to do their best for you in challenging circumstances. 

Thank you for your time and understanding.

Dr Blades and Partners

Leiston Surgery

The results from the 2022 GP Patient Survey are now in, follow the below link to view our results! 

GP Patient Survey Results - Leiston Surgery

The Leiston Surgery would like to say a huge Thank You to the Aldeburgh League of Friends, who have very kindly donated the funds for us to purchase a much needed 2nd 24 hour ECG machine for the surgery. We are incredibly grateful for their generous donation and ongoing support.