News

Help To Care App

Caring for someone due to illness, disability or old age?

The Free Help to Care app is a simple-to-use tool developed to provide all carers with clear advice, guides, training and local service information.

We want to make sure you find the right help if you’re concerned about someone in your care.

The app is currently only available for carers in Kent & Medway, but we hope to expand this useful tool to other areas soon.

Created by local care professionals, the Help to Care app has features to help you on-the-go. From learning who is at risk of pressure sores, to checking where to get help if someone has symptoms of a urine infection.

NHS Help to Care app features:

• Handy tools to help you quickly find when and where to seek medical advice
• Useful advice articles and guides in one place, to help you on-the-go
• A range of training materials and videos to help you too

The NHS Help to Care app is a tool to help support carers in the invaluable work they do.

Help to care

Patients of Buckland Surgery, Peter Street Surgery and Tara Surgery

All three Surgeries, Buckland Medical Centre, Tara and Peter Street Surgery have been working collaboratively together for the past seven years.  Now we feel the time is right to merge all three surgeries.  This will take effect as from 23rd April 2021.  We would like to reassure our patients that all services currently provided will remain the same at all three sites.

Covid-19 vaccination programme

Checking vaccination status with the NHS App

People who want to travel abroad can now use the NHS App to show they have been fully vaccinated.
A full course is currently two doses of any approved Covid-19 vaccine. Vaccine status will be available from the NHS App which can be downloaded from app stores, with more information available on gov.uk. The CCG has also published information on its website. 
If patients are unable to access this service, and they have had two vaccines, they can request a paper letter from the NHS by calling 119. Patients should only call 119 if they have had their second dose more than five working days beforehand. It may take seven working days for the letter to arrive.
Government and NHS information has made it clear that GP practices cannot provide proof of vaccination status so patients should not contact them.

Kent & Medway Mental Health Support for Families

Please find attached the Kent and Medway Mental Health Booklet for Families. It is in an easy to read/print format and includes a range of services to help you look after the mental health and wellbeing of children, young people and adults.

Bump, Births and Beyond

A new NHS website has launched in Kent and Medway to help expectant parents make informed choices about their maternity care.
 
Bump, Birth and Beyond brings together information about local maternity services into one place for the first time, to make it easier for women to find out about antenatal care, post-natal care and options for giving birth.
 
The website was developed by the Local Maternity System (LMS), with feedback from local women and families, and working closely with midwives, clinicians, health visitors, local Maternity Voices Partnership representatives and partner organisations. It follows recommendations from the Better Births national review. which sets out a vision for safer, more personalised maternity services in England.

Developing Kent and Medway maternal mental health services

The Local Maternity System is working with TONIC to conduct interviews and surveys with women and their partners who have experienced birth trauma or loss.   This is to support the roll-out of maternal mental health services across Kent and Medway, following the pilot project currently running in east Kent: Thrive: Psychological Support for Birth Trauma and Loss.   Further information for patients is available on the new Bump, Birth and Beyond maternity services website and the KMCCG website.

Community Services in Dover (updated 17th March 2021)

Dover District Council are pleased to provide the Support Services List to the public.
Created in collaboration with Health and Social Care providers, Voluntary sector, Community groups and Department for Work & Pensions it is designed to provide a useful list of information such as:

  • Key contacts
  • Emergency Food
  • Access to Cash Options
  • Shopping, Prescriptions and Meals
  • Food shops & wholesalers delivering locally
  • Mental Health support
  • Befriending
  • Carer Support and Special Needs
  • Older People's Services
  • Young People's Services
  • Miscellaneous Community Support
  • Community Safety
  • Benefits, Jobs & Debt
  • Utilities, Council Tax and Dover District Council services
  • Local Housing Providers
  • Emergency Health & Patient Transport

The full list can be viewed here Services in Dover Newsletter_ Edition 17.pdf and can be printed.  

If you would like to be included in the next Support Services list please contact the Community Services Team at Dover District Council.