Quarterly Newsletter
Edition 1 | Spring 2026
A Message from Dr Ben Kay
Welcome to the first edition of our quarterly practice newsletter.
This newsletter is intended to keep you informed about developments within the practice, to share relevant medical updates that affect your care, and to reinforce the value of proactive, personalised healthcare. As pressures on NHS services continue to grow, we remain committed to offering thoughtful, evidence‑based medicine with time, continuity and clarity.
Over the coming year you will see a number of incremental changes designed to improve both the quality of assessments we offer and the information you receive following consultations. Many of these developments are not immediately visible, but they are aimed squarely at earlier detection of disease, better risk stratification, and more meaningful conversations about your health.
Practice News & Updates
Enhanced Consultation Summaries with Tandem AI Transcribing
We are pleased to announce the rollout of Tandem across the practice. This technology supports consultations by generating a clear, structured summary of your GP appointment.
Tandem is used only to transcribe consultations into the medical record. It does not think, decide, or retain memory beyond the consultation, and all entries are checked by your doctor.
Tandem is now used routinely by default to support consultations, as it has been shown to improve clarity and patient understanding. However, its use is always optional, and patients may request that it is not used at any time.
When Tandem is used, patients consistently report significant benefits, including:
- A clearer written record of what was discussed
- Improved understanding of diagnoses and management plans
- Greater confidence in next steps following the consultation
Following your consultation, where Tandem is used, you will be offered:
- A written summary of the discussion
- Key findings and agreed plans
- Clear next steps and follow-up actions
These summaries can be printed or emailed to you, helping you to reflect on the consultation and share information with family or other healthcare professionals if needed.
Enhancements to Our Annual Health Checks
We have recently updated our annual health check assessments to reflect emerging evidence and best practice. These changes represent a significant step beyond the standard NHS Health Check and are designed to provide a more detailed and personalised risk assessment.
What’s New?
- Liver Health Assessment
We now include formal assessment of liver health using validated risk modelling. This allows earlier identification of fatty liver disease and liver fibrosis, conditions that are increasingly common and often silent in early stages.
- Bone Health (Women Over 40)
For women aged over 40, we now incorporate fracture risk assessment using FRAX scoring. This helps identify osteoporosis risk earlier and supports timely lifestyle or treatment interventions.
- Enhanced Diabetes Risk Assessment
For patients with diabetes, we have expanded our cardiovascular and metabolic risk assessment, incorporating more detailed risk markers beyond routine blood sugar monitoring.
- QRISK3 Retained
We continue to use QRISK3 as a core component of cardiovascular risk assessment for all eligible patients.
How This Compares to the NHS Health Check
While NHS Health Checks provide an important baseline screening, our updated assessments:
- Use more detailed risk modelling tools
- Allow longer consultations to interpret results meaningfully
- Focus on earlier intervention and prevention
This enables more nuanced, personalised discussions about your long‑term health.
Blood Testing Costs
Some elements of these enhanced assessments rely on blood tests. NHS England guidance permits NHS trusts to charge private providers for blood testing, and a number of trusts nationally have already implemented this.
Locally, this is being considered by Salisbury NHS Trust. This follows concerns raised about private testing arrangements, and we are keen to ensure that any changes are implemented transparently, fairly and in line with national guidance.
We are in direct contact with the laboratory management team at Salisbury and are actively working towards the best possible financial solution for our patients. Our priority is to ensure high-quality testing at the lowest achievable cost.
Should charges be introduced, the practice will not apply any mark-up to blood test costs passed on to patients. Where costs may become difficult for some individuals, we will also support patients in liaising with their NHS GP to access appropriate testing.
We will keep patients informed as soon as there is greater clarity.
Vaccination Update: MMR, MMRV and Chickenpox
There have been recent changes in the UK to the routine childhood vaccination schedule, with the introduction of the combined MMRV vaccine (measles, mumps, rubella and varicella).
We recognise that some parents and adults may prefer not to receive the combined MMRV vaccine.
At the practice we are able to offer:
- MMR vaccination for children and adults who do not wish to have MMRV
- Separate chickenpox (varicella) vaccination where appropriate
If you would like to discuss vaccination options for yourself or your child, please contact the practice for advice.
New Counselling Service at SIMP
We are pleased to let patients know that a new counselling service will shortly be available at the practice.
Rob Pratt, a qualified counsellor and EMDR therapist, will be offering counselling sessions from a consulting room at SIMP on Mondays from March.
A warm, relaxed portrait taken with the sea in the background.
People seek counselling for many different reasons. You may be experiencing feelings that feel overwhelming or difficult to understand, or you may wish to explore how past experiences are influencing your present. Counselling can be helpful for a range of concerns, including anxiety, trauma, health-related issues, patterns in relationships or behaviour, loss, or coping with change.
Rob offers a calm, supportive space in which these experiences can be explored thoughtfully, with the aim of gaining clarity and developing more helpful ways forward.
If you would like to explore whether counselling might be right for you, you are welcome to contact Rob directly to arrange a free 15-minute introductory call, during which you can ask questions and discuss your needs.
Contact details
Email: rob@kinoko-counselling.uk
Session fee: £60 for a 50-minute session
Sessions are self-funded and invoiced directly by Rob and are not included within any SIMP subscription.
Further information about Rob’s practice and professional registration can be found here:
- https://www.kinoko-counselling.uk/
- https://www.bacp.co.uk/therapists/417580/robert-pratt/
- https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/counselling/rob-pratt-alderholt/1682239
- https://www.counselling-directory.org.uk/counsellors/rob-pratt
Using the NHS App to Share Your Health Information
For patients who also use NHS services, we encourage you to review your health record regularly using the NHS App.
In particular, the Documents section of the NHS App can be very helpful. This allows you to view, download, and securely share letters and clinic summaries from NHS consultations, including outpatient appointments and hospital attendances.
If you have recently seen an NHS consultant, downloading the relevant clinic letter and emailing it to us at info@independentdoctor.co.uk can help ensure we have the most up-to-date information about your care. This supports safer, more coordinated decision-making and reduces the need for duplicate investigations or delays in treatment.
Patients who do not use NHS services do not need to take any action.
If you are unsure how to access or download documents within the NHS App, our reception team will be happy to advise.
Member Benefit Spotlight: Preventive, Personalised Care
One of the less visible benefits of membership is the ability to continually refine and improve preventive care.
Membership allows:
- Longer, unhurried consultations
- Proactive health reviews
- Access to advanced risk assessment tools
- Continuity with a clinician who knows your history
These elements underpin the changes described above and support earlier detection and better long‑term outcomes.
Staying in Touch
We hope you find this newsletter helpful. If there are topics you would like us to cover in future editions, or if you have questions about any of the updates outlined above, please let the practice team know.
Our aim is to ensure you feel informed, supported, and confident in the care you receive.
This newsletter is provided for information only and does not replace personalised medical advice. Please contact the practice if you have specific concerns.