Bury Knowle Health Centre
207 London Road
Headington
Oxford
OX3 9JA
Tel: 01865 761651

News:

Did not attend - 'DNA'

On average, 300 booked appointments are wasted each month because patients do not attend.

If you miss 3 or more appointments in a given period, we will notify you that further missed appointments will result in your removal from our list and you having to find another GP.

We have introduced an SMS Text Reminder service to remind patients of their appointments. Please advise our reception team of your mobile telephone number if you wish to use this new service and we’ll send you a text message to confirm all future appointments and remind you of them.

If you cannot attend an appointment please telephone our reception team on 01865 761651 to cancel the appointment so someone else can use it.

Announcements

01 Sep - 01 Oct
NHS Smokefree

Find out about all of the free NHS services available to support you as you go try to give up smoking.

01 Aug - 01 Oct
NHS Summer Health

Stay safe in the sun, including sunscreens, sunburn relief, heat exhaustion, eczema and moles. Summer holidays are great fun for children, but can bring risks. Find out more

01 Jul - 01 Oct
Change for Life

Would you like loads of tips and help to make changes for a healthier future? As part of Change4Life, you will receive tons of helpful information, recipes, tools, tips, and games for the kids.

BBC Health

Stem cell medic misconduct ruling

A doctor who offered controversial stem cell treatments to multiple sclerosis patients faces being struck off by the General Medical Council.

Plea to save MS respite centres

Volunteers are calling on the MS Society not to abandon four respite care centres in York, Surrey, Warwickshire and East Lothian

Stress hormone heart death link

High levels of the stress hormone cortisol are closely linked to death from cardiovascular disease, a Dutch study has found.

'Sponge checks' for cancer risk

Swallowing a sponge on a piece of string could help prevent a deadly form of cancer, experts claim.

Firm handshake link to long life

The strength of your handshake could be a clue to how long you'll live, say UK scientists.

Speed of ageing is 'slowing down'

The cost burden of ageing populations in industrialised nations may not be as much as feared because of improved health, a study suggests.

Scan to 'track brain development'

Scientists say they can quickly and accurately map a child's brain development using an MRI machine and a maths programme.

Trust plans to stop IVF treatment

A primary care trust in Greater Manchester is planning to suspend funding for IVF treatment, to try to cut costs.

Legionnaires' source hunt narrows

Doctors say they are narrowing down the potential source for a Legionnaires' disease outbreak in south Wales after the deaths of two people.

Prostate tests call for 'at risk'

Screening men with a family history of breast and ovarian cancer can lead to early diagnosis of prostate cancer, says a study.

Yahoo Health

Cholera stalks West Africa as rains spread disease (AP)

In this Monday, Sept. 6, 2010 photo, a doctor treats a child suffering from cholera, at a village health clinic in Ganjuwa in Nigeria's rural Bauchi State. Health officials, some with surgical masks covering their faces, sprayed anti-bacterial solution on muddy paths in this village, and patients jammed into rudimentary clinics as the government struggled to contain a cholera epidemic that has killed nearly 800 people in two months. The worst epidemic in Nigeria in 19 years is spreading to Cameroon, Chad and Niger, where it has killed hundreds more people.(AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

AP - Patients jammed rudimentary clinics and health workers in surgical masks sprayed anti-bacterial solution on muddy paths as the government struggled to contain a cholera epidemic that has killed nearly 800 Nigerians in two months.

AIDS doctors, activists call for more health funds (AP)

Graca Machel, an International advocate for children and the poor, and wife of former South African Presdient Nelson Mandela, speaks during an interview with the Associated Press in Johannesburg Friday, Sept 10, 2010. Machel said that the debate over food in her impoverished homeland did not end with the government's reversal on bread prices. (AP/Tawanda Mudimu)

AP - Doctors and AIDS activists on Friday urged African governments to fulfill a decade-old pledge to spend more of their own money on health if they want international help in fighting AIDS.

FDA warns of deadly side effect with imaging drugs (AP)

AP - Federal health regulators are warning doctors that a class of injectable drugs used in MRI medical imaging scans can cause a rare and sometimes fatal condition in patients with kidney disease.

CDC: Adults eating less fruit, not enough veggies (AP)

AP - An apple a day? Apparently not in the United States.

Study: Flamboyant male dancing attracts women best (AP)

FILE- This is a file photo of John Travolta and Karen Gorney dance in a nightclub scene to disco music in Paramount Pictures 1977 film 'Saturday Night Fever', which explores the restless generation growing up in the 70's. John Travolta was onto something. Women are most attracted to male dancers who have big, flamboyant moves similar to the actor's trademark style, British scientists say in a new study. (AP Photo/HO, File)

AP - John Travolta was onto something. Women are most attracted to male dancers who have big, flamboyant moves similar to the actor's trademark style, British scientists say in a new study.

Doctors see eye hazard in powerful laser pointers (AP)

AP - A 15-year-old boy damaged his eyes while playing with a laser pointer he'd bought over the Internet, say doctors who warn that dangerously high-powered versions are easily available online.

Risks of old, new diet drugs face U.S. scrutiny (Reuters)

Reuters - The risks of a potential new diet pill and a 13-year-old weight-loss medicine face U.S. scrutiny next week as medical experts consider if the drugs' benefits outweigh possible side effects.

Doctors alarmed by HIV risk for European gays (AFP)

Homosexual men in Europe are increasingly failing to adhere to safe sex, according to two new studies. In France, transmission of the AIDS virus

AFP - Homosexual men in Europe are increasingly failing to adhere to safe sex, according to two new studies. In France, transmission of the AIDS virus "seems to be out of control" among men who have sex with men, said a paper published on Thursday in The Lancet Infectious Diseases.

Clinical Trials Update: Sept. 10, 2010 (HealthDay)

HealthDay - (HealthDay News) -- Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy of ClinicalConnection.com:

Clearing Kids for Sports Participation Sparks Conflicts (HealthDay)

HealthDay - THURSDAY, Sept. 9 (HealthDay News) -- Most teenagers think they're invincible, and that goes double for talented teenage athletes. They're young, immortal, at the top of their game, the envy of their friends.

MedPage Today

More Body Fat May Up Death Risk With Colon Cancer (CME/CE)

(MedPage Today) -- Among postmenopausal women who have colon cancer, those carrying extra weight before their diagnosis appear to have an increased risk of dying, researchers found.

Score Predicts Morbidity Risk in Preterm Infants (CME/CE)

(MedPage Today) -- Physiologic data from the first three hours after birth integrated into a computer model predicted premature infants' morbidity risk with greater than 90% accuracy, as demonstrated in a study of 138 preterm infants.

HHS Workers Owe a Bundle in Back Taxes

WASHINGTON (MedPage Today) -- Employees at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) owed a total of $37.3 million in back taxes at the end of 2009, according to a report published online Thursday in the Washington Post.

FDA Adds Warning to Some Diagnostic Drugs

WASHINGTON (MedPage Today) -- The FDA is requiring the makers of some gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) to add new warnings to the drug label to minimize the development of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF) in some patients with kidney dysfunction.

Palliative Care Training Program Ineffective (CME/CE)

(MedPage Today) -- A hospital-based training program designed to improve end-of-life care in the intensive care unit had no effect on quality of dying or quality of care, researchers found.

Hospital Trauma Transfers Not Common, but Costly (CME/CE)

(MedPage Today) -- Transferring trauma patients from one hospital to another, only to discharge them that day or the next, is a relatively infrequent occurrence but is still a costly burden on the medical system, researchers said.

Dose Increase Little Help with Anti-TNF Drugs (CME/CE)

(MedPage Today) -- Increasing the dose of an anti-tumor necrosis factor drug in patients with rheumatoid arthritis is unlikely to increase the therapeutic response, an observational study found.

Teen Weight Problems Predict Overweight Adults (CME/CE)

(MedPage Today) -- Dramatic shifts in the prevalence of overweight and obesity occur between adolescence and young adulthood, a prospective cohort study of Australian youths showed.

Carotid Stenting Too Risky for Older Patients (CME/CE)

(MedPage Today) -- Carotid stenting should be avoided in symptomatic patients ages 70 and older but may be as safe as its surgical counterpart in younger patients, researchers determined.

Money for ESC Research Flows Again, for Now

WASHINGTON (MedPage Today) -- A federal appeals court has ruled that government funding of embryonic stem cell (ESC) research can resume while it mulls a federal district court judge's ruling blocking the funds.

Qualifications

Do you ever wonder what the letters after a doctors name mean? Please click on the link above for the answer!

Qualifications.doc

Doctors

Nursing Staff

Practice Team

Healthcare Team

Doctors

Dr Justin Amery (m)
MBBS, MRCGP, DFFP, DRCOG, DCH Justin works 6 sessions per week - Tuesday (all day), Wednesday (PM), Thursday (PM) and Friday (all day). Justin is also a GP Trainer.

Dr Sarah Chantler (f)
MBBS, DCH, DRCOG, MRCGP
Sarah works 4 sessions a week - Monday (AM), Wednesday (all day) and Friday (AM)

Dr Melissa Holden (f)
BA, BN, BCh, DRCOG, DFFP, MRCGP
Melissa works 5 sessions per week - Monday - (all day), Tuesday (all day) and Thursday (PM).

Dr Emma Pierce (f)
BM, DCH, DRCOG, MRCGP, RCGP, Cert in drug misuse management, DFFP. Emma is on maternity leave until May 2011.

Dr Louise Rutter (f)
BM, BCh, MRCGP, DCH, DRCOG, Cert Med Ed
Louise works 4 sessions a week - Monday (All day), Wednesday (AM) and Thursday (AM). Louise is also a GP Trainer

Dr Blythe Wilkinson (f)
MBBS, MCRGP, DFFP, DRCOG, DCH Dr Blythe Wilkinson works 4 sessions per week - Monday (all day)Wednesday (PM) and Friday (AM).

Dr Sanjay Dahiya (m)
MB ChB, DFFP, MRCGP, Dip ENT
Sanjay works 6 sessions a week - Monday (All day), Tuesday (PM), Wednesday (AM) and Friday (All day).

Dr Enas Al-Dabagh (f)
Enas works 7 sessions a week - Monday (All day), Wednesday (PM), Thursday (All day) and Friday (All day).

Other languages spoken: Arabic

Dr Ruth Imrie (f)
BM BCh, MRCP, MRCGP, DFSRH
Ruth works 5 sessions per week - Tuesday (all day), Wednesday (AM) and Friday (all day)

Dr David Griffiths (m)

BM BCh, MRCP, MRCGP David works 5 sessions per week - Monday (all day), Tuesday (AM) and Friday (all day).

Dr Tania Young (f)
BM BCh Tania works 3 sessions per week - Wednesday(All day) and Friday (AM).

Nurses

The skills and experience of nurses continue to have more recognition and application in primary care – and rightly so. We continue to develop our nurse-led services, which have proved to be very popular. You may choose to see our practice nurses Susan McCrae, Penny Thompson, Lesley Haxworth or Lizzie Bews. The nursing team take a lead role in managing conditions such as asthma, diabetes and high blood pressure. They can give you structured support to stop smoking, and they also run daily nurse minor illness clinics for patients requesting same day urgent appointments, or who are looking for telephone advice. Naturally they also offer the traditional nursing services, such as blood sampling, dressings, childhood and other vaccinations, the removal of stitches, and they help the doctors with minor surgery. They will also give you contraceptive advice, arrange all your travel vaccinations and advise you on maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle. You will see Hannah Jenkins for blood samples, blood pressure checks, smoking cessation advice and ECGs.

Sister Lesley Haxworth
Lesley works Monday (All day), Tuesday (All day) and Wednesday (All day).

Sister Susan McCrae
Susan works on a Tuesday (all day), Wednesday (9am - 3pm) & Thursday (9am to 3pm)

Sister Penny Thompson
Penny works Monday (all day), Tuesday (AM), Wednesday (all day) and Thursday (AM).

Lizzie Bews
Lizzie is on maternity leave until March 2011.

Phlebotomists

Hannah and Vijee are our Phlebotomists, they run blood sample clinics on a Monday (at Bury Knowle and Barton), Tuesday, Thursday and Friday morning. Hannah also runs a weekly ECG clinic, and assists with Minor Surgery.

Practice Management

Stuart MacFarlane is the Practice Manager and is responsible for the smooth running of the Health Centre. Claire Crook is the Deputy Practice Manager, and is particularly responsible for the standard of our reception and other patient services, and all our IM&T systems.

Administration

Our dedicated administration and secretarial staff are here to support the smooth running and organisation of the surgery. A tremendous amount of work goes on behind the scenes keeping your records up to date and summarised, organising sufficient appointments to meet demand, arranging your hospital appointments, and managing staff and finances.

Reception

Apart from meeting you personally, they also receive your telephone calls, make your appointments, arrange repeat prescriptions, and generally try to make your visit go as smoothly as possible. They may need to ask you further details when you telephone or visit the surgery. This is to ensure that we assist you as speedily as possible. They are bound by the same rules of confidentiality as the doctors and nurses.

Community Midwives

If you are expecting a baby please see your GP who will then refer you on to our team of midwives. They are part of the team that looks after expectant mothers before, during and after childbirth. You need to see a midwife preferably before you are 10 weeks pregnant. During pregnancy, parents soon get to know their midwife very well and feel that they always have a "friend" to help them along. In addition to supporting and caring for you, they will be able to give you advice about antenatal testing, healthy eating, exercise, sexual matters and baby feeding ... in fact anything that you might want to talk about.

Community Nurses

Our District nurses Judy Moore, Caroline Carus, Carole Smith, Lucy Willans and Sharon Eddings can visit you at home if you are housebound. They are able to provide care which includes support for patients and their carers during periods of illness, wound care including post-operative care, assessment of continence and catheterisation.

Health Visitors

Our Health Visitors are Liz Marshall, Rachel Richards, Sandy D'Amon and Eileen Williams. They are able to discuss child and family health issues at home or in the Health Centre. Regular Child Health clinics are held to discuss issues such as sleep, behaviour, nutrition and toilet training. Health Visitors provide support to families including emotional support following the birth of a baby. Post-natal groups are run for first time parents. They also work outside the practice in family centres, schools and community centres supporting public health initiatives. This work includes health promotion, such as healthy eating and smoking cessation to a wider community.

Attached Staff

Psychologist/Counsellor

Your mental health is as important to us as your physical health. Talking about how you feel can be beneficial in many ways. All of the doctors, nurses and health visitors are happy to listen to you; we also have a counsellor and a psychologist in the surgery each week to give more in depth help. Please see your GP if you feel you would benefit from their help.

Physiotherapist

If you have any problems with joint pains, arthritis, immobility or sports injuries, our physiotherapists Viv Gleave & Associates will help you. Please contact your GP to arrange a referral. We are fortunate that this is an NHS service with waiting times well below those experienced elsewhere.

Dentist

The dental team have now moved to the new building to the right of the main surgery entrance. Dr Sharma is in charge of the NHS Dental Practice at Bury Knowle. She and her associates are able to take new NHS patients. The dental practice is open Monday to Friday between 8.30am and 1pm and 2pm until 5pm. Please contact the dental reception team on 01865 308400.

Practice Information

For quick medical advice online or on the telephone contact NHS Direct