GP Earnings

All GP practices are required to declare the mean earnings (e.g. average pay) for GPs working to deliver NHS services to patients at each practice.                                                                                                                                                                                             

The average pay for GPs working in The Ivy Medical Group in the last financial year was £65,651 before tax and National Insurance.                                           

This is for 0 full time GPs, 2 part time GPs and 2 locum GPs who worked in the practice for more than six months.

It should be noted that the prescribed method for calculating earnings is potentially misleading because it takes no account of how much time doctors spend working in the practice, and should not be used to form any judgement about GP earnings, nor to make any comparison with any other practice.

NHS Zero Tolerance

The Practice supports the Government’s ‘Zero Tolerance’ campaign for Health Service Staff. This states that GPs and their staff have a right to care for others without fear of being attacked or abused. To successfully provide these services a mutual respect between all the staff and patients has to be in place.

Our Practice staff aim to be polite, helpful, and sensitive to all patients’ individual needs and circumstances. They would respectfully remind patients that very often staff could be confronted with a multitude of varying and sometimes difficult tasks and situations, all at the same time. The staff understand that ill patients do not always act in a reasonable manner and will take this into consideration when trying to deal with a misunderstanding or complaint.

However, aggressive behaviour, be it violent or abusive, will not be tolerated and may result in you being removed from the Practice list and, in extreme cases, the Police being contacted.

In order for the Practice to maintain good relations with their patients the Practice would like to ask all its patients to read and take note of the occasional types of behaviour that would be found unacceptable:

  • Offensive or abusive language, verbal abuse and swearing which prevents staff from doing their job or makes them feel unsafe.
  • Loud and intrusive conversation
  • Unwanted or abusive remarks
  • Negative, malicious or stereotypical comments
  • Invasion of personal space
  • Brandishing of objects or weapons
  • Threats or risk of serious injury to a member of staff, fellow patients or visitors
  • Bullying, victimization or intimidation
  • Stalking
  • Spitting
  • Alcohol or drug fuelled abuse
  • Unreasonable behaviour and non-cooperation such as repeated disregard for NHS
    policy ie. Smoking on premises, or
  • Any of the above which is linked to destruction of or damage to property

NB – It is important to remember that such behaviour can be either in person, by telephone, letter or e-mail or other form of communication such as graffiti on NHS property.

Violence at work

The Practice acknowledges that there may be instances where violence and / or aggression forms part of a patient’s illness. In these circumstances, the issue will be discussed with the patient and form part of their care planning.

This information will be recorded in the patient’s medical record and flagged to ensure that members of staff are aware. In addition, where deemed necessary, appropriate support will be put in place, e.g. staff members do not see the patient alone.

Physical and verbal abuse includes:

  • Unreasonable and / or offensive remarks or behaviour / rude gestures / innuendoes
  • Sexual and racial harassment
  • Threatening behaviour (with or without a weapon)
  • Actual physical assault (whether or not it results in actual injury) includes being pushed or shoved as well as being hit, punched or attacked with a weapon, or being intentionally struck with bodily fluids or excrement.
  • Attacks on partners, members of staff or the public
  • Discrimination of any kind
  • Damage to an employee’s or employer’s property

Removal from the Practice list

The removal of patients from our list is an exceptional and rare event and is a last resort in an impaired patient-Practice relationship. We value and respect good patient-doctor relationships based on mutual respect and trust. When trust has irretrievably broken down, the Practice will consider all factors before removing a patient from their list, and communicate to them that it is in the patient’s best interest that they should find a new practice. An exception to this is in the case of immediate removal on the grounds of violence e.g. when the Police are involved.

Removing other members of the household

Because of the possible need to visit patients at home, it may be necessary to terminate responsibility for other members of the family or the entire household to ensure the safety of Practice staff.

The prospect of visiting patients at the residence of a relative who is no longer a patient of the practice, or the risk of being regularly confronted by the removed patient, may make it difficult for the Practice to continue to look after the whole family. This is more likely where the removed patient has been violent or displayed threatening behaviour, and keeping the other family members could put doctors or their staff at risk.

Chaperones

The Ivy Medical Group is committed to providing a safe, comfortable environment where patients and staff can be confident that best practice is being followed at all times and the safety of everyone is of paramount importance

Some examinations and treatments, in particular where they involve intimate body parts and states of undress, can make patients feel vulnerable and distressed.

A chaperone is to protect both patients and staff from abuse or allegations of abuse and to assist patients to make an informed choice about their examinations and consultations. chaperone may assist in supporting and reassuring a patient during an examination or procedure.

The healthcare professional may also require a chaperone to be present for certain consultations in accordance with the practice chaperones policy.

What to expect?

You can request a chaperone be present during any examination or procedure that you feel uncomfortable with. Expect the role of the chaperone to be clearly explained to you and the person introduced to you by the health care professional who is to undertake the examination or procedure.

Who can be a chaperone?

The practice will try to ensure your chaperone is a qualified nurse or health care assistant. In some circumstances a non-clinical member of staff may be asked to chaperone. All clinical and non-clinical staff have received chaperone training.

Arranging a chaperone

If you would like to arrange a chaperone in advance please inform the receptionist when you book your appointment so they can arrange for a nurse or health care assistant to be available. If during your consultation the clinician feels a chaperone is needed, they will attempt to arrange this, if possible during the consultation. In the unlikely event a chaperone cannot be arranged you may be asked to arrange another appointment.

What is the chaperones responsibility? 

  • Ensure that their conduct is sensitive and respectful of your privacy and dignity
  • To reassure you if you are distressed or experiencing any discomfort and to communicate this, if appropriate, to the clinician
  • Ensure that they can communicate with you in a way that you can understand

Can a family member act as a chaperone?

  • Your family member cannot act as a formal chaperone. You can however request that a member of your family or a friend be present as an informal chaperone during the examination.

Can I refuse a chaperone?

  • You have the right to refuse a particular person as a chaperone; in this instance we will document the reasons for your refusal and an alternative chaperone will be arranged.

Confidentiality

  • All our staff and clinicians are trained to a high level on the laws and policies relating to data protection and confidentiality. Your chaperone will not disclose any information obtained during your examination or procedure. In all cases where the presence of a chaperone may intrude in a confidential clinician-patient discussion, their presence will be confined to the physical examination only. One-to-one communication with the clinician will continue once the chaperone has left.

Summary Care Record

There is a new Central NHS Computer System called the Summary Care Record (SCR). It is an electronic record which contains information about the medicines you take, allergies you suffer from and any bad reactions to medicines you have had.

Why do I need a Summary Care Record?

Storing information in one place makes it easier for healthcare staff to treat you in an emergency, or when your GP practice is closed.

This information could make a difference to how a doctor decides to care for you, for example which medicines they choose to prescribe for you.

Who can see it?

Only healthcare staff involved in your care can see your Summary Care Record.

How do I know if I have one?

Over half of the population of England now have a Summary Care Record. You can find out whether Summary Care Records have come to your area by looking at our interactive map or by asking your GP

Do I have to have one?

No, it is not compulsory. If you choose to opt out of the scheme, then you will need to complete a form and bring it along to the surgery. You can use the form at the foot of this page.

COVID-19 Additional Information in SCR

This practice is supporting vital coronavirus (COVID-19) planning and research by sharing your data with NHS Digital. For more information about this see the General Practice Transparency Notice for GPES Data for Pandemic Planning and Research (COVID-19).

More Information

For further information visit the NHS Care records website.

Feedback and Complaints

Talk to us

Every patient has the right to make a complaint about the treatment or care they have received at Ivy Medical Group.

We understand that we may not always get everything right and, by telling us about the problem you have encountered, we will be able to improve our services and patient experience.

We take patient complaints seriously and will attempt to address your concerns to your satisfaction.

Who to talk to

Most complaints can be resolved at a local level. Please speak to a member of staff if you have a complaint; our staff are trained to handle complaints.  Alternatively, they can arrange for you to speak to the complaint’s manager usually within 24 hours. A complaint can be made verbally or by completing a complaints form, which is available from reception. Additionally, you can complain by sending a letter via the post or email to:

nnicb-nn.ivymedicalgroup@nhs.net

What Happens Next?

The complaint will be acknowledged within 3 working days.  The practice will respond, after investigation, within the timeframe specified to you at the acknowledgement stage of the process.  Some complaints may take longer to address but you will be informed of a response time.  If this cannot be met, the practice will keep you informed.

Please be assured making a complaint will not adversely affect your ongoing healthcare at the practice.  We will deal with you fairly, compassionately and will endeavour to resolve the situation to a satisfactory conclusion.

Wherever possible, we aim to learn from complaints and take action to avoid similar occurrences.

How do I complain to someone Independent?

GP Practices would prefer to have the opportunity to answer complaints ourselves in the first instance. However, you may pass your complaint directly to:

Patient Experience Team

Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Integrated Care Board

Sir John Robinson House

Sir John Robinson Way

Arnold

Nottingham

NG5 6DA

Tel: 0115 8839570

Email: nnicb-nn.patientexperience@nhs.net

If you would like further information please follow the link to the ICB website: Patient Experience and Complaints – NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire ICB

However, please note, patients cannot raise the same complaint with the practice and ICB.

Is there a time limit?

A complaint must be made within 12 months of the date of the incident that caused the problem or the date of discovering the problem.

Please remember, the quicker you complain, the easier it will be to investigate the facts.

If you are not satisfied with the outcome?

You can contact the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) on 0345 015 4033.

For more information see their website www.ombudsman.org.uk

Other useful contacts

POhWER, NHS Complaints Advocacy, on 0300 456 2370.  For more information see their website www.pohwer.net

Confidentiality

Ivy Medical Group will ensure that all complaints are investigated with the utmost confidentiality and that any documents are held separately from the patient’s healthcare record.

Third party complaints

Ivy Medical Group allows a third party to make a complaint on behalf of a patient. The patient must provide consent for them to do so.  A third-party patient complaint form is available from reception.

Final response

Ivy Medical Group will issue a final formal response to all complainants which will provide full details and the outcome of the complaint. We will liaise with you about the progress of any complaint.

Click here to view our up to date complaints leaflet.

Non-NHS / Private Work

This summary describes the practices approach with private and non-NHS work.

The Ivy Medical Group is a proud NHS provider of Primary Medical Services to our patients, free at the point of delivery and of the highest quality. There are some services, such as certain vaccinations and completion of medical reports and forms, which are chargeable as they do not fall under the terms of service of the NHS Standard Contract.

What kinds of things are chargable?

Examples of non-NHS services for which GPs can charge their NHS patients are:

  • Accident/sickness insurance certificates
  • Certain travel vaccinations
  • Private medical insurance reports
  • HGV medicals

Examples of non-NHS services for which GPs can charge other institutions are:

  • Medical reports for an insurance company
  • Some reports for the DSS/Benefits Agency
  • Examinations for employment purposes

How do I request non-NHS work and how much will it cost?

If you require support with non-NHS / private work, please contact our medical secretaries. Fees for non-NHS / private work will always be quoted before work is undertaken.

How long will non-NHS work take to complete?

Please note that GPs are not obliged to do any of the above work, it will always take second place to clinical work. Time spent completing forms and preparing reports takes the GP away from the medical care of his or her patients.

Please do not expect your GP to process forms overnight. You should expect the form(s) to take up to 12 weeks for the GP to complete and return. This includes simple certificates or GP signatures. When a doctor signs a certificate or completes a report, it is a condition of remaining on the Medical Register that they only sign what they know to be true. In order to complete even the simplest of forms, therefore, the doctor might have to check the patient’s entire medical record.

We will always try and complete administration requested by our patients as soon as possible but please be aware that currently it may take up to 12 weeks. We would like to thank our patients for their understanding with this process.

Privacy Notice

Data Protection Privacy Notice for Patients

Introduction:

This privacy notice lets you know what happens to any personal data that you give to us, or any that we may collect from or about you.

This privacy notice applies to personal information processed by or on behalf of the practice. This Notice explains:

  • Who we are, how we use your information and our Data Protection Officer
  • What kinds of personal information about you do we process?
  • What are the legal grounds for our processing of your personal information (including when we share it with others)?
  • What should you do if your personal information changes?
  • For how long your personal information is retained by us?
  • What are your rights under data protection laws?

General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) became law on 24th May 2016. This is a single EU-wide regulation on the protection of confidential and sensitive information. It enters into force in the UK on the 25th May 2018, repealing the Data Protection Act (1998).

For the purpose of applicable data protection legislation (including but not limited to the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679) (the GDPR), and the Data Protection Act 2018 (currently in Bill format before Parliament) the practice responsible for your personal data is [The Ivy Medical Group].

This Notice describes how we collect, use and process your personal data, and how, in doing so, we comply with our legal obligations to you. Your privacy is important to us, and we are committed to protecting and safeguarding your data privacy rights

How we use your information and the law.

The Ivy Medical Group will be what’s known as the ‘Controller’ of the personal data you provide to us.

We collect basic personal data about you which does not include any special types of information or location-based information. This does however include name, address, contact details such as email and mobile number etc.

We will also collect sensitive confidential data known as “special category personal data”, in the form of health information, religious belief (if required in a healthcare setting) ethnicity, and sex during the services we provide to you and or linked to your healthcare through other health providers or third parties.

Why do we need your information?

The health care professionals who provide you with care maintain records about your health and any treatment or care you have received previously (e.g. NHS Trust, GP Surgery, Walk-in clinic, etc.). These records help to provide you with the best possible healthcare.

NHS health records may be electronic, on paper or a mixture of both, and we use a combination of working practices and technology to ensure that your information is kept confidential and secure. Records which the Practice hold about you may include the following information;

  • Details about you, such as your address, carer, legal representative, emergency contact details
  • Any contact the surgery has had with you, such as appointments, clinic visits, emergency appointments, etc.
  • Notes and reports about your health
  • Details about your treatment and care
  • Results of investigations such as laboratory tests, x-rays etc
  • Relevant information from other health professionals, relatives or those who care for you

Read more in our full privacy statement

RCGP Research Ready Practice

“Research is to see what everybody else has seen, and to think what nobody else has thought.” – Albert Szent-Gyorgyi

The Ivy Medical Group has been accredited as a research ready practice by the Royal College of General Practitioners. We support, celebrate and facilitate research, and recognise the importance it brings to improving patient care.