Noticeboard

Mask Wearing

From the 16th May, the Scottish Government has advised to stand-down the current guidance regarding the extended use of fluid resistant face masks (FRSM) and face coverings within health and care settings for staff, patients and visitors.  

It is no longer necessary to wear any face covering unless it is required where there is a risk from close contact with individuals displaying respiratory symptoms.

Patients will not be asked to wear face masks unless there is a risk of transmission from individuals with respiratory symptoms, however, patients and visitors may still choose to wear a face covering as a matter of personal choice.

The new guidance covers all hospitals, health centres, community sectors, primary care facilities and care homes.

 VERBAL ABUSE

Unfortunately, our practice staff have been subject to an increase of verbal abuse over recent weeks from a small number of patients.

This is not acceptable and we would like to remind everyone to be mindful of this when contacting the practice.  The practice is extremely busy and we are dealing with queries as quickly and efficiently as we can.

Verbal abuse towards any of practice staff will not be tolerated and may result in you being removed from our practice list.

Diazepam for fear of flying

 Practice Policy – Diazepam and Fear of Flying

 

Portland Park Medical Centre no longer prescribes sedatives (like diazepam) for a fear of flying.  This new policy decision has been made by the GP Partners and is adhered to by all prescribers working in the practice. The reasons for this decision are as follows.

 

1)      Diazepam is a sedative, which means it makes you sleepy, more relaxed and can significantly delay your reaction times. If there is an emergency during the flight, it may impair your ability to concentrate, follow instructions and react to the situation. This could have serious safety consequences for you and those around you.

 

2)      Sedative drugs can make you fall asleep. However, when you do sleep it is an unnatural (non-REM) sleep. This means that you won’t move around as much as during natural sleep.  This can cause you to be at increased risk of developing a blood clot (DVT) in the leg or even the lung. Blood clots are very dangerous and can be fatal. This risk increases with increased flight time.

 

3)      Whilst most people find sedative medications like diazepam have a relaxing effect, a small number of people can actually feel more agitated or even aggressive after taking it. Diazepam can also cause disinhibition and lead you to behave in a way that you would not normally. This could impact on your safety as well as that of other passengers, and could also get you into trouble with the law.

4)      According to the prescribing guidelines that doctors follow (known as the BNF), benzodiazepines like diazepam are not recommended for use in phobias. They are only licensed for short term use during a crisis in generalised anxiety. If this is the case, you should be getting proper care and support for your mental health.

5)      Diazepam and similar drugs are illegal in a number of countries. They may be confiscated or you may find yourself in trouble with the police if you are carrying any on arrival.

 

6)      Diazepam stays in your system for quite a while. If your job requires you to submit random drug testing you may fail this having taken diazepam.

We do appreciate that fear of flying is very real and very frightening. A much better approach is to tackle this properly with a Fear of Flying course run by the airlines. We have listed contact details below.

 

 

Please also note that due to the above reasons, we are also unable to prescribe diazepam for dental appointments, hospital scans or other procedures. This would need to be discussed with the dentist or hospital department directly.



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