looking after your family - Canterbury District Health Board

Primary Health
Get to know your
general practice team
and benefit from a full range of healthcare services
canterbury people are being encouraged to
develop an ongoing relationship with their General
Practice team.
Dr Graham mcGeoch, a General Practitioner at the
Barrington medical Centre, says he would encourage
people whenever possible to visit the same General
Practice team with any health concerns.
“it takes a while to develop a trusting relationship
with a General Practitioner. Getting to know someone
is important so that you can trust their judgement
and feel relaxed enough to talk to them.
“although people might think that any doctor could
solve their problem, it is worth making an effort to
see the same General Practice team every time you
have a health concern as they have patients’ medical
histories on file. where possible, people should also
aim to initially see the same General Practice team
for the full range of health concerns, whether it be for
an stD (sexually transmitted disease) check or for a
sports injury.”
Dr mcGeoch says people should go directly to
Christchurch Hospital’s emergency Department in
an emergency, such as when they have severe chest
pain, a badly broken bone or very bad bleeding.
However, for non-urgent problems, people will
generally get the attention they need quickly and
efficiently at their General Practice.
“most General Practitioners are experts at sifting
through a patient’s concerns and have a broad
knowledge of health issues. they will often be able to
make a decision quickly, recommend specialist treatment
if it is needed and advocate for patients where
necessary because we are essentially the ‘travel
agents’ in the health system.
18 / HealtH first
“Christchurch also has excellent after hours surgeries,
many of which have x-ray facilities and good
access to Christchurch Hospital if they need further
treatment.”
Dr mcGeoch says General Practitioners and
Practice nurses are the key points of contact for
routine healthcare, such as childhood immunisations
and cervical and mammogram screening (a test to
detect breast cancer). they are also able to look at
the ‘bigger picture’ and at ways to keep their patients
healthy.
“General Practice teams are able to look at a
patient’s preventative health and suggest ways in
which they can manage their health on an ongoing
basis.”
many General Practices are also evolving with
the times and are able to offer other services such
as answering patients’ queries or organising repeat
prescriptions over text or email.
“often the most private way of getting in touch
with younger people might be through their mobile
phone. this is the kind of flexibility that many General
Practices are able to offer,” he says.
many General Practices also offer a range of other
services on site including physiotherapy and pharmacy
services.
as more people access the internet and other
sources for health information, Dr mcGeoch says
General Practitioners also play a key role in clarifying
any confusion.
“People can get health information from so many
different sources these days, for example the internet,
that General Practitioners can play an important
role in putting a professional context around it.”