Carer’s Support Policy

If you are a carer, you might find it difficult to access our services without extra support.

If you identify yourself as a carer, our staff will try to offer you:

1. Home visits and/or telephone appointments if caring responsibilities mean you cannot leave the person you care for at home or bring them with you to the surgery.
2. Flexibility or priority on appointment times where possible.
3. Support for the person you care for in the waiting room or a private area if you need to bring them to the surgery but would like an appointment in private.
4. Information about local carers’ support services which may be able to arrange transport and/or sitting services to help you leave home to attend surgery.
5. Telephone ordering for prescriptions where possible.
6. An annual health check and a flu jab.
7. Information about your right to a Carers’ Assessment of your own needs as a carer.
8. Advice on safer lifting and other aspects of providing care such as medication.
9. Discussing with you what you would like us to do in the event of you or the person you care for having a medical or other emergency.

In some cases caring roles are full time and very demanding. We would like to support you in your caring role where we can. We will avoid making assumptions about the amount of care you wish to take on.

Caring should not be at the expense of your own health and wellbeing. Please tell us how your caring role is affecting you and if you have any support needs.

We will try to help you by:

• Respecting your privacy and confidentiality and conducting conversations of a personal nature in private.
• Discussing the benefits of appropriate information sharing with patients who need or may in future need care from a relative or friend.
• Providing you with information about the condition and needs of the person you care for, such as the effects of medication, where that person gives consent.
• Always listening to and respecting the information you give us about your caring role and the needs of the person you care for.
• Providing you with general information about health conditions when you ask for it when we do not have consent from the person you care for to share their personal information.