Chapelizod Medical Centre
Vaccination Information
January 2023:
NIAC has recommended authorised adapted bivalent Covid vaccines for all those who are eligible for a booster vaccination. Adapted bivalent COVID-19 vaccine boosters include components of the original virus strain and the Omicron variant.
A second booster is being offered to people:
- age 18 to 49 – wait at least 6 months since getting your last COVID-19 vaccine or COVID-19 infection
- aged 50 to 64
- 18 or older with a condition that puts you at high risk of serious illness from COVID-19 – for example, diabetes, asthma or heart disease
- pregnant (from 16 weeks)
- healthcare workers
If you have already had your second booster, you can get another one if you are aged:
- 65 or older
- 18 or older with a weak immune system
Chapelizod Medical Centre will be offering vaccines to eligible patients aged 16 and over. To register your interest, please apply via the vaccines page on this website: https://www.chapelizodgp.ie/vaccines/
Note: it must be 4 months since your last covid vaccine before you can have another.
If you would like to view other options for getting your covid booster please visit the HSE website: https://www2.hse.ie/screening-and-vaccinations/covid-19-vaccine/get-the-vaccine/booster-booking/
Flu vaccine 2022:
You can get a free flu vaccine if you are:
- aged 65 years and older
- a healthcare worker
- pregnant
- living in a nursing home or other long-term care facility
- in regular contact with pigs, poultry or waterfowl
People with these conditions can also get a free flu vaccine:
- chronic heart disease, including acute coronary syndrome
- chronic liver disease
- chronic kidney failure
- chronic respiratory disease, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis, moderate or severe asthma, or bronchopulmonary dysplasia
- chronic neurological disease including multiple sclerosis, hereditary and degenerative disorders of the central nervous system
- diabetes
- Down syndrome
- haemoglobinopathies
- a body mass index (BMI) over 40
- immunosuppression due to disease or treatment (including asplenia or hyposplenism, and all cancer patients)
- children with a moderate to severe neurodevelopmental disorder such as cerebral palsy
- children on long-term aspirin therapy
- any condition that can compromise respiratory function, like spinal cord injury, seizure disorder or other neuromuscular disorder, especially people also attending special schools or day centres
Free flu vaccines will be offered to carers or household contacts of people who have:
- a health condition listed above
- Down syndrome
To register your interest, please apply via the vaccines page on this website: https://www.chapelizodgp.ie/vaccines/ and one of our team will be in touch.
NOTE: Children’s (2-17yo) nasal flu vaccines are now also available from the practice
January 2023: Our phone lines are extremely busy at present. In case of emergency, please don’t hesitate to contact emergency services on 112 or 999 or attend your local emergency department. Thank you for your patience.
As an employer, the practice has a duty to care for the health and safety of its staff. Therefore, the practice is committed to do everything possible to protect staff, patients and visitors from unacceptable behaviour, and has ‘zero tolerance’ of any incident that causes hurt, alarm, damage or distress.
Our practice staff are here to help you; our aim is to be as polite and helpful as possible to all patients. If you consider that you have been treated unfairly or inappropriately, please ask the reception staff to contact our Practice Manager or senior doctor who will be happy to address your concerns. However, shouting or swearing at practice staff will not be tolerated under any circumstances, and patients who are abusive may be removed from the practice list.
Examples of unacceptable standards of behaviour:
Physical violence or aggression
Verbal abuse or aggression
Racial abuse or sexual harassment
Offensive or threatening behaviour
Causing damage to or stealing from the practice premises
Abusing alcohol or drugs on the practice premises
Obtaining drugs or medical services fraudulently
General practice is working under unprecedented levels of patient demand and expectation, and we appreciate that this can lead to increased levels of patient distress. However, we hope that patients will agree that our staff are our most valuable asset, and that verbal abuse or aggression is unacceptable.
Thank you very much in anticipation of your understanding.
One Problem Per Consultation policy
We have a ‘One Problem Per Consultation’ policy
We kindly ask that all patients try and stick to our ‘One Problem Per Consultation’ policy. The main reason for this request is for clinical safety.
We know that getting an appointment with the doctor is sometimes difficult and that some patients ‘save’ their problems and present them to the doctor at the same time, with or without a list. We also know that the clinician may run late. All of this increases the tendency for patients to present multiple problems to their doctor at one consultation.
Each appointment is only 10 minutes long. Ten minutes really is not a lot of time, even for just one problem, e.g., 1 minute to get to doctor’s room and sit down, 3 minutes to tell a history, 3-4 minutes to perform a targeted examination, 2 minutes to explain, advise and treat. There is no time left of the ten minutes to write up notes, fill out forms, dictate referrals or speak to other team members for advice.
Presenting the clinician with multiple problems means that there is a real increased risk that mistakes will be made and things to be missed as the clinician may be inclined to rush, particularly if other patients are waiting.
One of Primary Care’s main purposes is to detect serious disease early. Presenting multiple problems to the clinician, not all of which may be serious, increases the difficulty of this task – it is like finding the ‘needle in a haystack’.
Doctors cannot see huge numbers of patients with multiple problems and continue to practice safely and effectively. A stressed doctor will struggle to be a good and safe doctor.
We do consider that GP appointments are a limited resource and we would kindly ask that such a service be used with care and consideration.
Therefore please do not be offended if the doctor asks you to rebook for your other problems. We are working in your best interests in order to keep you safe.
We would always encourage patients to book double appointments if there are multiple problems that need discussing.