Ashburton Surgery

02/09/2026

Free NHS Digital Weight Management Programme

Did you know that you may be eligible for free NHS online support to help you manage your weight?

The NHS Digital Weight Management Programme is a 12-week online programme for adults who are living with obesity and also have high blood pressure, type 1 or type 2 diabetes, or both.

You will usually be eligible if your BMI is 30 or above. A lower BMI threshold of 27.5 applies for people from some ethnic minority backgrounds.

The programme is designed to be flexible. You can work through it online, at your own pace and in your own time, using a smartphone, tablet or computer. It includes practical support with healthy eating, activity, wellbeing and making sustainable lifestyle changes, with additional coaching support available where needed.

If you are eligible, your GP practice can refer you. Find out more, including the full eligibility criteria, on the NHS England website:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/digital-weight-management/how-to-access-the-programme/

01/09/2026

Don’t put your bowel screening kit to one side

Since bowel cancer screening started in England in 2006, it has helped find around 70,000 bowel cancers. It is estimated to save up to 2,400 lives each year.

If you’re aged 50 to 74, you’ll usually receive a screening kit through the post every two years. It only needs one small sample and can be completed at home.

Screening can pick up bowel cancer before you have any symptoms, when it is often easier to treat. It can also find polyps that could become cancer in the future.

So, when your kit arrives, please complete it and send it back. It could save your life.

If you have symptoms that could be bowel cancer, please contact your GP rather than waiting for a screening kit.

More information:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/bowel-cancer-screening/

26/08/2026

🐾 Today is International Dog Day!

Dogs can support our health and wellbeing in several ways:

🐕 Regular dog walking helps us stay physically active, supporting heart health, mobility and a healthy weight
💚 Companionship can reduce feelings of loneliness and isolation
😊 Spending time with a dog may help reduce stress and improve mood
🌳 Daily walks encourage us to spend time outdoors and connect with nature
👋 Dogs can help us meet and talk to other people in our community
🕒 Caring for a pet can provide routine, purpose and structure to the day

Many of these benefits can also come from sharing our lives with other pets.

Today we’re celebrating the animals who help keep us active, connected and feeling well. We’d love to see a photo of yours! 🐾

August 26 marks International Dog Day, a chance to celebrate our four-legged friends. We want to know what is special about your dog.

25/08/2026

Ashburton Surgery Flu and Covid clinics . Our Saturday vaccination clinics will be taking place on 3rd and 10th October - you can book your appointment at one of these Saturday clinic dates from Thursday 27th August. Please book your appointment online or by calling the surgery after 2pm.

Flu

If any of the following apply to you, even if you feel healthy, you are more likely to get complications from flu if you catch it, and you are advised to have a flu vaccine if:

You are pregnant

You are aged 65 or over

You are aged six months to 64 years and have a long-term health condition that puts you at increased risk from flu, including but not limited to:

- Diabetes

- A heart problem

- A chest complaint or breathing difficulties, including COPD and asthma that requires regular steroid inhalers or tablets

- Kidney disease (from stage 3)

- A weak immune system due to disease or treatment (and also their close contacts)

- Liver disease

- Had a stroke or mini stroke

- A neurological condition like Parkinson’s disease, or motor neurone disease

- A missing spleen or a problem with it

- Learning disability

- Severe mental illness

- Morbidly obese. Defined as those with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 40 or above, aged 16 or over

- Epilepsy

- You live in a care home

- You are homeless

Covid

You’ll be offered the covid
vaccine this year if you:

are aged 75 years or over (born on or before 31 March 1952)

live in a care home for older adults

are aged 6 months or over (born on or before 1 March 2026) and have a weakened immune system

25/08/2026

25/08/2026

Millions of women in England are to be offered HPV self-testing kits as the new service rolls out from today.

The kits will be offered to those who haven’t attended cervical screening following previous invitations, providing a discreet and convenient way to test for high-risk HPV at home.

➡️ https://www.england.nhs.uk/2026/08/nhs-rolls-out-discreet-home-testing-kits-against-cervical-cancer-for-millions-of-women/

21/08/2026

Ashburton Surgery is currently experiencing reduced staffing levels in our dispensary . We kindly ask for your patience when ordering and collecting medications , as there may be slightly longer waiting times than usual. Please allow additional time for your prescription to be processed and prepared, and where possible , avoid leaving medication requests until the last minute. Thank you for your understanding.

05/08/2026

Have you signed up for the NHS App?

You can download the NHS App to a smartphone or tablet from the Apple App Store or Google Play. You can also create an account and access the same services through a web browser on a computer, phone or tablet—there is no need to download anything:

https://www.nhsapp.service.nhs.uk/login

You must be aged 13 or over and registered with a GP surgery in England. You will need an email address and a phone number, and you may be asked to confirm your identity to access your health information.

04/08/2026

04/08/2026

🔵 Help shape the future of prostate cancer care

If you have been diagnosed with prostate cancer, your experience could help improve diagnosis, treatment and care for men now and in the future.

Prostate Progress is a national research programme bringing together people’s experiences and healthcare information. Participants complete a short online survey every few months and can agree to securely link information from their NHS records. The research could help:

✅ Support earlier and more accurate diagnosis
✅ Identify which treatments work best
✅ Improve the management of side effects
✅ Reduce inequalities in prostate cancer care

Signing up takes just a few minutes and can be completed on a phone, tablet or computer.

Find out more and join Prostate Progress:
https://www.prostate-cancer-research.org.uk/prostate-progress/

Join Prostate Progress and help accelerate better diagnostics, treatments and screening for men affected by prostate cancer now and in the future. Your experience will drive research that change.