GP drop in event at Castlemere

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GPs from the Rochdale West GP cluster and health professionals from Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale Primary Care Trust (HMRPCT), will be giving free health checks to anyone who attends the healthy communities event at Castlemere Community Centre on 21 August.

Nurses from the cluster will also be on hand to help give people a health MOT including blood pressure checks, cholesterol checks, monitoring weight and checking for signs of diabetes.

Doctors from Baillie Street Surgery, Tweedale Street Surgery, and Lower Place Surgery will be on hand between 10am and 7pm to give health advice on how to prevent illness to members of the public, whether or not they are registered with a GP. They will not be able to make referrals or write prescriptions but can give advice on whether further medical treatment is needed.

The Rochdale West GP cluster is a group of practices that are working together to improve the health and well being of patients across the East of Rochdale. The cluster, with the support of the PCT, wants to reach patients in the community who would not normally attend a GP surgery.

“There is still a lot of people who aren’t registered with a GP or don’t go for a regular Health check so it’s important that we find ways to take our services out into the public,” said Dr Babar Ghafoor the GP lead for this project from the Rochdale West cluster.

“Our GP’s and clinical staff are very experienced and the event is a great opportunity for people to receive a health check and discuss any niggling health worries in a community location. We are very keen to work with our partners in the community to encourage patients who would not normally attend surgery to receive a health check and promote the services they can receive in primary care. It’s the first time we’ve done something like this and if it’s popular, we’d definitely look to hold similar events in other areas.”

Val Orr, health improvement practitioner for the PCT added: “We did a health roadshow earlier this year which was really successful in reaching people who don’t go to see a GP. We were even able to warn people about having high cholesterol or blood pressure, which is what these events are all about. We really encourage local people to attend and make the most of the services on offer.”