Please be aware that we are currently only accepting new registrations from within our boundary area. Due to the expansion of the population in the local area we have have reached capacity in terms of the number of patients we have and are therefore unable to provide services to people who are not resident in our area.
See link below for our boundary.
Towcester Medical Centre Boundary Area
To Register
If you are staying here on a temporary or short-term basis please choose Temporary Registration:
If you have moved permanently to our area please choose New Patient Registration Form and a New Patient Health Questionnaire (for Adults only). All are available from reception or can be downloaded by clicking on the links below:
For Adults (16 years and over):
AND
OR
For children (0-15 years):
Once completed these need to be returned to reception where they will be entered onto our clinical system. Alternatively please email to [email protected].
Registration can take up to a week or more due to the number of new patient notifications received so if you need an appointment we ask that you complete your registration in advance. We also normally need to see proof of identification in order to register a patient for our online services although in certain circumstances we may be able to register you without the ID check. Identity documents can be a passport, driving licence, or official letter e.g. utility bill, bank statement. Once we have all the relevant information we are able to register a patient and obtain medical records from their previous surgery. We will also be able to register you with our online partner – Patient Access – so that you can make appointments and order repeat medication online. An email may be sent to your email address on your registration form to enable you to get started online.
If you are on any repeat medication you will need to see a doctor before you can re-order your medication. It will help us if you can supply us with your repeat medication slip or a note from your previous GP again this can be emailed to [email protected]. This will enable us to get the necessary details in place.
When you register with us you will be assigned a named GP but you are free to make an appointment with any doctor at the practice. If you would like to know who your named GP is please contact the surgery.
We encourage new patients to have a Health Check appointment with our Health Care Assistant.
What is Summary Care Record?
A Summary Care Record contains important information about any medicines you are taking, any allergies you suffer from and any bad reactions to medicines that you have previously experienced.
This allows authorised healthcare staff to have access to this information and helps with decision making by doctors and other healthcare professionals when patients are being cared for in an emergency or when their GP practice is closed.
Your Summary Care Record also includes your name, address, date of birth and your unique NHS Number to help identify you correctly.
Healthcare staff will have access to this information, so that they can provide safer care, whenever or wherever you need it, anywhere in England.
For further information you can visit www.nhscarerecords.nhs.uk/summary
Your Medical Records and Confidentiality
Your medical records are held electronically, on our computers, including all prescriptions, letters, consultations and test results relating to your medical care. We are registered under the Data Protection Act and take all necessary steps to protect your data.
All information that we hold about you is confidential. All our staff have a legal duty to preserve that confidentiality.
To provide you with the care you need we will occasionally need to share information about you with other NHS staff. Those to whom we pass information are also bound by the same strict code of confidentiality.
If we are asked to provide reports to people or organisations outside the NHS e.g. Insurance Companies or Solicitors the disclosure of your medical records can only be made with your consent.
Organ Donation
You can join the NHS organ donation register by completing the relevant section on your registration form or you can do it on-line. For further information click here NHS Organ Donation
NHS Treatment for Visitors to the UK
Whilst you can register with the GP practice as an NHS patient and see the GP without charge, you should be aware that not every person is entitled to NHS care free of charge in England.
Generally, NHS care is free of charge for those:
– Ordinarily resident in the UK
– Insured by an EEA member state, e.g. with a valid EHIC or S1 form
– Covered under the immigration Health Charge (“Surcharge”)
– Exempt in law – e.g. refugees or victims of slavery
Some services are always free to all people, e.g. the diagnosis and treatment of most infectious diseases
Ordinarily resident
Ordinarily resident means, broadly speaking, living in the UK on a lawful and property settled basis for the time being. You will be asked to provide this.
If you are a citizen of the European Economic Area (EAA) or Switzerland, you can become ordinarily resident when you move to England, as long as you meet the criteria above.
If you are a non-EAA national subject to immigration control, you can only be considered ordinarily resident if you have been given the immigration status of ‘indefinite leave to remain’ (the right to live here on a permanent basis).
However, if you are a family member of an EAA national who is resident in the UK, you may not be subject to immigration control, even though you yourself are from outside the EEA.
For more information about applying to join family living permanently in the UK, visit www.gov.uk
If you are not ordinarily resident in the UK then you are classed as an overseas visitor and will have to pay for most treatment outside the GP practice unless exempt.
What we may do with the information about chargeable status
You may provide information about your chargeable statues at various points within the NHS, including registering with this GP practice. This information is stored on the NHS database, and shared with trained administrators, so that your chargeable status can be confirmed as soon as possible.
We may need to check your immigration status with the Home Office. We may need to share EHIC, Provisional Replacement Certificates and S1 form details with the Department for Work and Pensions and your home country (EEA only). We may also need to share some information more widely to prevent crime, including fraud.
Further sources of information or advice
Online resources:
www.nhs.uk
‘Visiting or moving to England’
‘Your health and care records’
‘Help with health costs’
‘Paying NHS charges’
www.gov.uk
‘Guidance on overseas visitors’
Advice centres:
Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS) at your local hospital
Your local Citizens Advice Bureau
Which overseas visitors are exempt?
– Refugees, asylum seekers and some categories of failed asylum seekers
– Victims of modern slavery
– Children looked after by the local authority
– People covered under reciprocal healthcare agreements with the UK
– Armed forces members and some crown servants
For a full list, see ‘visiting or moving to England’ on www.nhs.uk
From EEA and visiting, studying or retiring to the UK?
Please provide details on the GP registration form of your valid, non-UK European Health Insurance Card (for visitors and students) or provide your ‘S1’ form (for pensioners, some workers). This will ensure that your home country funds the healthcare that may be necessary during your stay, so that you will not be asked to pay. If you are a visitor/student needing planned care, you will need an ‘S2’ form from your home country.
From outside EAA and here to reside in or visit the UK?
If you have been granted leave to enter or remain in the UK for a temporary period of more than six months, and have paid (or have been exempted from paying) the Immigration Health Charge (also known as the ‘Surcharge’), or you believe that another exemption from charge category applies to you, please indicate this on the GP registration form. Please take documents with you to any hospital appointment to confirm your identity and any exemption you may have.
www.nhs.uk – ‘categories of exemption’
The rules can be complicated and this is only a brief summary, so please visit www.nhs.uk for further information or ask for help and advice from your local hospital overseas visitor team before seeking treatment at a hospital, if possible.
Charges for some NHS services
Bear in mind that even if you are ordinarily resident here or are generally exempt from charge for your NHS care, some NHS services are not free, e.g. prescriptions and dentistry. You may also be exempt from these charges, under separate criteria www.nhs.uk – ‘Help with health costs’
What NHS services can I receive for free?
Even if you are generally chargeable, you can still receive the following services free:
Seeing your GP or practice nurse for any reason
– Being tested for most suspected infectious diseases and treated for them of the test is positive
– Family planning services (contraception)
– Treatment for sexually transmitted infection
– Treatment given at an Accident and Emergency unit (but not once admitted to hospital)
– Treatment of a condition caused by FGM, torture, sexual or domestic violence (unless you have come to the UK to see this care)
Paying for treatment
For other services, unless exempt, you will be expected to pay in advance for treatment, unless this would delay treatment needed urgently or immediately, in which case you will expected to pay afterwards.
What if I need to go to hospital?
If your GP refers you to hospital for further treatment then you should expect to provide documents that demonstrate you are ordinarily resident, or exempt from charge, otherwise you will have to pay. In an emergency, you should call an ambulance or go directly go to your nearest A&E department where you will receive immediate treatment to stabilize your condition. However, unless exempt, charges will apply if you are admitted to hospital.
Pregnancy
Unless exempt, you will have to pay for any treatment related to your pregnancy but treatment will not be withheld or delayed because of payment. Ensure you speak to your midwife about your care.
Non-payment
If you need immigration permission to be in the UK and fail to pay an outstanding amount due to the NHS, then your non-medical details and details of the debt may be charged with the Home Office, who may decline any further visa applications until the amount is paid.
Source NHS England – June 2017
