Smoking is one of the biggest killers in society today, and giving up could be the biggest favour that you do for yourself.
Please click on the button below to self refer to Healthy Cornwall, where you will be put in touch with a local stop smoking advisor. Unfortunately the Surgery is unable to refer you, it must be done by yourself.
We offer all routine immunisations and overall health care for your child, including child health surveillance in conjunction with the Health Visitors.
We believe that it is extremely important that you have your child vaccinated. We will generally send you a reminder by post and encourage you to make an appointment for your child. If you have concerns over the safety of any of the immunisations, or any other questions then come in and have a chat with one of us.
Together with the local community midwives and the doctors and midwives at Treliske Hospital, we will support you through your Pregnancy.
If you are pregnant simply ring the Midwife Team at West Cornwall Hospital on 01736 874180 or click the button below and complete a Contact Form and the midwives will contact you directly.
They will organise all of your ongoing care for your pregnancy. They will explain how often you will be seen after that and what tests (such as blood tests & scans of your unborn baby) are available.
Our Health Visitor will also get in touch with you and will visit you so that she can get to know you before the birth of your child.
If you want to have your baby at home, discuss this with your Midwife. The nearest hospital delivery facilities are in Treliske Hospital in Truro, where there is now a new Birthing Centre with birthing pools. There is also a midwife run unit in Helston, which has a birthing pool.
If you think you may be pregnant and are using street drugs such as heroin then please ensure you tell the doctor or midwife straight away.
The online Electronic Personal Health Record (ePHR) system provides information for all midwifery contact numbers, trusted information leaflets and maternal help groups while allowing the benefit of instant access to view your Maternity Record on any mobile device, tablet or PC throughout the duration of your pregnancy.
Ask your midwife about your Digital Maternity Record or contact Maternity IT Monday – Friday 9am – 4pm on 01209 881788 or 07557172389
Online Registrations is also available by clicking the button below. This allows you to complete your first booking information, complete your birth preferences plan and view your Maternity notes.
All the GP’s are trained in family planning and can offer advice on all aspects of contraception – just make an appointment to discuss what method would suit you best. Dr Carla Rowe is our GP trained to fit contraceptive coils.
All of our Practice nurses are able to give advice, do annual pill checks and give contraceptive injections.
We also provide emergency contraception (the “Morning After Pill”). Some local pharmacists can also provide this, but they will make a charge.
If you have an unplanned pregnancy we can offer advice and support for this too, and if you would like, referral for a termination (abortion).
If you have a mole or other lump or bump on your body that you are concerned about, or if it simply gets in your way, then come in and let one of us have a look at it. If we are concerned too then we will ask the skin specialists at the hospital to see you. If they think it may be cancerous, or dangerous in some other way, they will remove it for you. They will not however remove moles that are benign (harmless).
To find out more about protection from skin cancer go to: http://cancerresearchuk.org/sunsmart/
Hypertension is the medical term for High Blood Pressure.
High blood pressure is increasingly common as we get older, and is associated with an increased risk of strokes and heart attacks.
We aim to screen all patients over the age of 45 every 5 years to detect and treat hypertension.
Patients with hypertension are usually seen annually in a dedicated clinic run by one of our Health Care Assistants, or more often if there are any concerns.
We offer cervical cancer screening at our surgery to all our female patients who are eligible. The Government recommends that all women between the ages of 25 and 64 have a cervical smear test every three to five years, depending on your age.
| Age Group (Years) | Frequency Of Screening |
| 25 | First invitation |
| 25 – 49 | 3 yearly |
| 50 – 64 | 5 yearly |
| 65+ | Only those who have not been screened since age 50 or have had recent abnormal tests |
If a previous smear test has shown changes, or if you have had to have any treatment to your cervix, then you may be called more frequently.
If you have not had a recent smear test we can offer you one when you attend the surgery for other reasons. We will also write to you if we think you are overdue for a smear test. It is important you ensure that we have your correct name and address details to enable us to remind you when you are due for another smear test.
If you do not want to have a smear test please discuss this with your doctor or nurse so that we can answer any questions you may have. We may ask you to sign a form to say that you do not want to have a smear test, and then we will stop reminding you that you are overdue! Please also let us know if you have had your smear elsewhere (eg family planning clinic).
We have recently introduced a new way of taking smears (liquid based cytology) which means that the results come back much more quickly – usually less than a month – and there are less “inadequate samples”.
A negative result means that no abnormal cells have been seen. Your next smear will be in 3 years.
If you have any abnormal bleeding, either mid-cycle or after intercourse, PLEASE DON’T WAIT for your next smear – report this to your Doctor immediately.
An inadequate/unsatisfactory result means that not enough cells were collected from your cervix for proper analysis, and the test needs to be repeated. We will contact you and ask you to make another appointment for a smear test.
We try to keep the number of inadequate smears as low as possible, and recent changes in the way that we takes smears has helped in this.
An abnormal result means that there are changes that could cause problems in the future. It does NOT usually mean that you have cancer now.
When this happens we will either ask you to have another smear test in 3-6 months time, or refer you to the colposcopy clinic.
At the colposcopy clinic the cervix is examined with a powerful microscope and any abnormal area is removed. This treatment is almost 100% effective.
If you do need to have a colposcopy, you are then advised to have annual smears for 3 or 5 years.
Many people now suffer from long term medical conditions, such as diabetes, asthma or heart disease. We like to see patients with these conditions at least once a year – more often in some cases – to find out how you are and to review your medication.
We run special clinics for each of these conditions, and will remind you by post when it is time for you to make an appointment. These clinics are run by specialist nurses, who have had dedicated training in providing the best care for these conditions. You will often need to have a blood test a couple of weeks before hand so that we have the results to hand when we see you.
If you require any vaccinations relating to foreign travel you need to make an appointment with the practice nurse to discuss your travel arrangements. This will include which countries and areas within countries that you are visiting to determine what vaccinations are required.
To help us offer the appropriate advice, please fill out the online form before coming to see the nurse.
It is important to make this initial appointment as early as possible – at least 6 weeks before you travel – as a second appointment will be required with the practice nurse to actually receive the vaccinations. These vaccines have to be ordered as they are not a stock vaccine. Your second appointment needs to be at least 2 weeks before you travel to allow the vaccines to work.
The following websites will give you additional travel advice.
We offer advice and testing for sexual health problems, including HIV.
Dr Rowe has worked in West Cornwall Hospital GUM clinic and has a special interest in this area.
No appointment needed.