Thursday, 06 January 2022

Visiting the GP Practice

Everyone accessing or visiting healthcare facilities must continue to wear a face covering and follow social distancing rules, COVID restrictions ending in many other settings in England from 19 July.

This means that staff, patients and visitors in GP practices, hospitals, dental practices, optometrists and pharmacies, are expected to continue to follow social distancing rules as well as using face coverings and other personal protection equipment to ensure patients and staff are protected.

 

Chief Nursing Officer for England, Ruth May said: “Face coverings and social distancing measures will remain in place across healthcare settings so that the most vulnerable people can continue to safely attend hospital, their GP surgery, pharmacy or any other healthcare settings for advice, care and treatment.

“And it is important for the public to continue to play their part when visiting NHS and care settings to help protect our staff and patients, particularly those who may be more vulnerable to infections. 

“As restrictions are lifted in many places on Monday everyone has a part to play in helping to control Covid by getting vaccinated and acting responsibly.

“It is vital that in healthcare settings, we do all we can to reduce the risk of infection for those working in our services and those who need our care.”  

Fiona Taylor, chief operating officer at South Sefton and Southport and Formby CCGs said: “We are still in the third wave of the pandemic and there are rising cases of the Delta variant in Sefton.

“We are urging people to keep working together to keep safe. By wearing face coverings, we can protect ourselves and those around us, as we could be carrying COVID-19 but not showing symptoms.

So, continue to wear a face covering, washing your hands and keeping your distance in GP surgeries and other healthcare settings and in busy indoor places. Continue to get tested regularly, whether you have symptoms or not and please, get vaccinated as soon as you can.”

“We’ve all worked so hard and come so far in this pandemic and we’ve got to keep working together to ensure that staff and patients are kept safe.”

Getting vaccinated is the best way of keeping you and those around you safe – for details on where you can get vaccinated click here.