Broadway Update

We would like to share this important information with you. For the most up-to-date changes happening at the practice, please visit our website www.broadwaymed.co.nz.  Future newsletters will be available to subscribe to via the website soon.

We also would like to take the opportunity to thank you for bearing with us in recent times as we have had to change our processes to deal with COVID and the pressure on appointments.  It is and has not been easy, however, together and with kindness and understanding from both sides, we continue to work on improving our service to you.

So, to start we would like to give you the opportunity to read below about the recent changes in the following paragraphs:

Busy, busy times!

The demand for doctor and nurse appointments has only increased and the wait time for a routine appointment could be up to two weeks or sometimes longer. We understand that this is far from ideal, and we would like to reassure you that we are doing our best to provide needed care and support for everyone. Sometimes though, we are aware that there can be struggles with getting appointments as quickly as before.

We have systems in place to ensure that if you need an urgent appointment (face to face or virtual) we can look after you.

Please know that we are working hard on increasing the numbers in our team to help ease the pressure in this area. In the last few months, we have added two new nurses, Lauren and Tyla, a second health care assistant, Kate, and a new GP to our team, Jet. We are also working to add another GP in late March.

Decisions regarding how we are booking appointments are made to protect both patients and staff and are guided by the Ministry of Health.

Please knock to enter the building

To keep both you and our staff safe we have chosen to staff our front door. This means a staff member will open the door when you knock. You will be asked several questions before entering. We apologise for the inconvenience and humbly ask for your cooperation in keeping safe.

Masks for 8 years and over

Masks and sanitising hands are important in limiting the spread of COVID. Please use these when entering the practice. It is essential that every person 8 years and over wears a mask while in the practice.

If you have a mask exemption, please let the reception team know when making an appointment. They will give you instructions on what you need to do to ensure that your safety is not compromised when entering the building.

 Red or Green Stream

When you phone us for an appointment, the reception staff will be asking you several questions before they can organise an appointment for you. Reception staff can book a phone or video consult for you.

All urgent appointment requests or requests for a face-to-face appointment will first need to be assessed by a clinician. Reception is not a liberty to book face-to-face appointments. They will however ask questions to help our clinicians triage your situation appropriately.

If you do have a face-to-face appointment at the practice, you will have been informed where in the practice you will be seen. We have a red stream and a green stream. Green stream is the normal front door entrance on the right of the building which will be opened if you knock on the door. The Red stream is in the recently added cabin building on the far left of the building. If you have an appointment in the Red stream, we ask that you do not come to the front door but phone the number we send to you in a text, before leaving your car. Further instructions on what to do will be given on the phone.

Whichever stream you are asked to go to, be assured that we have extensive cleaning procedures in place. We continue doing our utmost to keep you and your whanau safe as we can in all streams.

Working from home

To ensure that we can maintain care for you as patients we have worked hard to create a team of staff working from home. This will mean that when you are speaking with reception, nurses, or GP’s that they may be based away from the clinic and some tasks may need to be relayed through to the team still based in the clinic. Please if you are dealing with something urgent make the staff member aware so that they can get in contact with the clinic-based team to action for you.

Phone, video, and face-to-face appointments are here to stay

Phone consults and Video consults are becoming more and more common. They are not just a temporary solution because of COVID they are here to stay. It is ideal for those consults that don’t need a “hands-on” consult. Just think of the time you gain not having to make your way to the practice, finding a park, or catching a bus and it saves money! So don’t worry they will stay and if the doctor decides they do need a face-to-face consult we will arrange this without extra charges.

With the rising cases in the region, we need to further prioritise virtual appointments (phone/video consults) with our Doctors and Nurses and limit the face-to-face appointments as much as possible. This is due to the limited space we have in the waiting room and social distancing requirements. Again, if the doctor or nurse decides, during your phone or video consult, that they need to see you in person we will organise this with you. Please be assured that if this is the case you will only need to pay for one consult, not two.

What happens if I or someone I know gets covid?

Whenever in doubt first make sure you are safe. Where a mask, keep your distance, and wash your hands. The COVID site (https://covid19.govt.nz/) has all the up-to-date information for you.

For more specific information regarding covid-19 please click on the links below:

https://covid19.govt.nz/isolation-and-care/if-you-test-positive-for-covid-19/

https://covid19.govt.nz/testing-and-tracing/contact-tracing/close-contacts/