Church Street Medical Centre

Hours Of Opening

Accidents And Casualties

There is no casualty department at the surgery. If you need stitches or suspect a broken bone, it is best to go directly to the accident and emergency department at Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow which is open 24 hours a day.

There is a Minor Injuries Unit at the Herts and Essex Hospital which is open on weekdays between 9.00am and 4.30pm. They cannot see all types of problem here so check first by calling 01279 655191, ext. 4298.

Out Of Hours Emergencies

Consider first phoning the nurse-led 24 hour advice service, NHS DIRECT, on 0845 4647. Calls are charged at local rates. Consider going to your pharmacist who is qualified to advise you on minor health problems and over-the-counter medications. Many treatments and remedies are available to buy without prescription.
Should the advice of a doctor be needed then dial 01279 657636.

If the surgery is closed a tape-recorded message will give the number of the out-of-hours emergency doctor service, so have a pen and paper ready, and if you are using a call box make sure that you have plenty of change.

The doctors working for the emergency doctor service are all general practitioners within the area and share an out-of-hours rota with the Church Street Surgery doctors. When you contact the out-of-hours service you will be asked for your name, address and telephone number and brief details of the problem. A doctor will call you back.

Please remember that this is an emergency service for urgent medical problems which cannot wait until the surgery opens.

Suggestions And Complaints

Things go wrong even in the best run organisations. We hope that there will not be many complaints, but if you feel something is going wrong, or could be done better, we want to know. In our experience most problems arise as a result of poor communication. If you have a problem, please contact Mr Graham Clarke (the practice manager) or one of the doctors.

Alternatively, you can contact Kim Hamblin from the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) at East & North Hertfordshire Primary Care Trust on
Patient Freephone Number: 0800 018 4277

Or by writing to the trust at:
Herts and Essex Hospital, Cavell Drive, Bishop's Stortford CM23 5JH

Confidentiality

All staff are bound by strict rules of confidentiality. We are a computerised practice and registered under the Data Protection Act.

Freedom Of Information– Publication Scheme

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 obliges the practice to produce a Publication Scheme. A Publication Scheme is a guide to the ‘classes’ of information the practice intends to routinely make available.

Information is available on application to the practice manager.

Rights And Responsibilities Of Staff And Patients

It is the right of our staff not to endure violent or abusive behaviour and further action may be taken should this occur. Our staff have responsibility towards the care and dignity of each of our patients and endeavour at all times to respect race, age, gender and disability.

Practice Area Map