Some services provided are not covered under our contract with the NHS and therefore attract charges as shown below.

Private prescriptions for Malaria tablets and other items will have a private prescription charge of £40 added to the total cost

Paul successfully gave up smoking recently after getting support from Help Me Quit. You too can access this support and successfully quit smoking for good!

Paul says:

“The reason why I did it was I was diagnosed with stage three aggressive bladder cancer which is a direct result of smoking…So obviously, you know, it’s a no brainer.  I needed to stop.

“The service provided me with options of different things to help me give up.

“I also had the option if I needed to talk about it, I could ring up, have a chat about any issues or any problems I was having with it, then have regular weekly meetings to see how I was progressing…

My sense of smell and taste are completely different to when I smoked.  Breathing is better, a lot better than it was.

“I don’t want to be dead at 52 just from smoking. So, for me, giving up smoking was the only choice. I had to give up but I couldn’t do it on my own.

Powys Teaching Health Board Smoking Cessation Team are here to support smokers in Powys wishing to quit in 2024.

The team (pictured below) is led by Ceri Peate (far left), Clinical Lead for Smoking Cessation, and includes Smoking Cessation Advisors (from left to right) Kathryn Jones, Mary Ann Pryce and Alex Doran who work across the geography of Powys. The team have experience in supporting smokers in their journey to becoming smoke-free and support individuals to quit smoking face-to-face or via telephone.

Dear Patients

Covid, Flu and other Respiratory infection rates are increasing in the local area.

This is why we are having to re-introduce mandatory mask wearing for our patients and visitors coming into Welshpool Medical Practice and Guilsfield Surgery, unless medically exempt.

We must try and keep each other safe and well.

Thank you for your hopeful co-operation

Drs Russell, Kiel, Aslam, Vibhishanan, Kelly, Kingham and Hirons

Follow the link below to the UK Sepsis Trust website, talking about the risk of sepsis for farmers and the signs to be aware of. It also stresses the urgency of seeking help sooner rather than later.

Sepsis Awareness in the Farming Community | The UK Sepsis Trust

In response to growing concern around an increase in the number of children and young people who are currently using e-cigarettes/vapes Powys Public Health Team would like to share NEW online Public Health Guidance on Vaping/E-cigarettes for Schools and Colleges in Powys to support young people to make good decisions about their health.

In Wales, recent data shows that 20.4% of people aged 11-16 have tried vaping, and in Powys 19.6% report that they’ve tried vaping.

Mererid Bowley, Director of Public Health, said “we have seen a steep increase in young people who have tried vaping across Powys. Many e-cigarettes contain highly addictive nicotine and other chemicals. We want to advise young people not to start vaping. Vaping is not harmless, with short-term effects of coughing, dizziness, sore throats and headaches being reported, and the long-term effects are not yet known.   It is illegal to sell E-cigarettes to under 18s. If you are aware of retailers in your community selling any tobacco products or e-cigarettes to children under the age of 18, please report them to Trading Standards.  You can do this by visting: NO IFS. NO BUTTS (noifs-nobutts.co.uk)”

The resource is being launched as a first step in supporting parents, teachers and other professionals working with young people to talk about the harms of vaping and how to access guidance and support. The launch of the resource follows a recent Strategic workshop involving a wide range of stakeholders looking at causes of increase in vaping, effects it is having in Powys and how to tackle vaping in Powys. The workshop was part of the Tobacco Control Strategic Group Meeting organised by Powys Public Health team.  Attendants of the workshop reported that the workshop was fascinating, and attendants were full of energy and enthusiasm for action to tackle vaping in Powys.

The Powys Tobacco Control Steering Group and Tackling Vaping subgroup will direct further work in coming months to support parents, teachers and other professionals working with young people to talk to young people about the harms of vaping and how to access guidance and support.

Please feel free to share the link to the guidance widely with partner organisations, colleagues and members of the public in Powys who will find this helpful and look out for further resources to be developed soon.

Powys Teaching Health Board Smoking Cessation Team are here to support smokers in Powys to quit and reach our ambition of a ‘Smoke-free Wales’ by 2030.

The team (pictured here) is led by Ceri Peate (far left), Clinical Lead for Smoking Cessation, and includes Smoking Cessation Advisors (from left to right) Kathryn Jones, Mary Ann Pryce and Alex Doran who work on different days and across the geography of Powys. The team have extensive experience in supporting smokers in their journey to becoming smoke-free and support individuals to quit smoking face-to-face or via telephone.

The support that the team provides can increase the chances of quitting up to 300% compared with going it alone!  The service includes access to FREE nicotine replacement medication. The health benefits of stopping smoking are immediate. To anyone who has struggled to quit, do not feel alone - the service is on hand to support you.

Whether it is visiting a local Smoking Cessation Clinic, meeting with other people who are also quitting on a regular basis or having virtual or telephone calls with one of our trained Smoking Cessation Advisors, there is an option suitable for everyone who wishes to give up smoking. The Smoking Cessation team also work closely with pharmacies across Powys to ensure that clients using the service have as many options available to them as possible.

If you would like to refer someone into the service or if you have any queries, please email StopSmoking.Powys@wales.nhs.uk.

Alternatively, you can refer via a self-referral form at https://www.helpmequit.wales

Powys Community Health Council Newsletter

"A key part of our role is to visit local health services to hear from patients and carers about their experiences. We have not been able to carry out any physical visits since March 2020. In recent months, we have worked closely with Powys Teaching Health Board to find a way to safely hear from people whilst they are in hospital. We are piloting some digital visits where patients can speak to one of our volunteer members over a video call. Our members ask questions about the hospital stay, to find out whether patients are comfortable, whether they feel listened to and involved in their care, the quality of food, and how easy it is to communicate with loved ones during their hospital stay. We've had challenges with these visits, such as problems with internet connection. However, they more visits we undertake, the more we are becoming streamlines with the process."

If you are a relative of someone who is currently, or has recently been in Hospital and you wish to share your experience you can do so by emailing Powys CHC on enquiries.powyschc@wales.chc.org.uk 

Use the Powys Community Health Council survey to tell us about:

• Your experience of care and/or treatment - it can be good or bad
• How your care and/or treatment has been affected by this emergency and how you feel about this.
• Any suggestions you may have on how the NHS in Wales could do things differently to try to re-establish health services.

To complete our survey, please follow the link here: CHC Survey link