There is a lot of concern about the outbreak of Ebola virus in west Africa and the risks of spread to Ireland. Currently the risk to Irish Citizens is low unless you have been travelling in one of the affected countries and come into direct contact with a person or animal infected with the disease.

The virus is spread through direct contact with the blood or body fluids of an infected person or animal. It is not spread through the air like Influenza and can not be caught from mosquitoe bites. The incubation period for the infection is between 2 and 21 days. The initial signs of the infection include

• Fever of greater than 38.6C
• Weakness
• Muscle and joint pains
• Headache
• Diarhoea
• Vomiting

If you have been to a country infected with the virus or have had direct contact with a person suspected of having Ebola Virus here in Ireland and are worried about Ebola, please contact the surgery by phone so that we can assess your symptoms further and arrange for further treatment for you.

We are very privileged to have Dr. Aimee Murphy join us for the year as a Senior GP Registrar from the TCD/HSE Vocational Training Programme for General Practice. Aimee is a graduate of Trinity College and has extensive hospital experience including Paediatrics, Obstetrics and Emergency Medicine. She also has qualifications and experience in Palliative Care.  Aimee has a warm and friendly personality which combined with her extensive experience and knowledge will make her a huge asset to the practice for the coming year.

If you are planning an escape to some exotic destination this summer, don’t forget to visit us for travel advice and vaccinations. At Kilmacud Medical Centre, we stock all of the common travel vaccinations and can provide you with information and advice on all of the common hazards of overseas travel. We subscribe to the Travax on line vaccination service so we are up to date with information on all of the latest infection out breaks across the world as well as region specific Malaria prophylaxis information. When you are booking a travel consultation, please let our reception staff know so that we can allocate you enough time to discuss your travel needs.

Free GP Care for under sixes is not likely to happen for the foreseeable future despite promises made by our Junior Minister of Health, Alex White. With all of the GP organisations against the terms of a new contract which the Department is attempting to bring in without any negotiations, it is hard to see how any progress can be made. While the majority of GPs are in favour of free GP care for children it can not be delivered without additional resources. At present GP practices are struggling to provide high quality services in the face or repeated cuts to practice payments for medical card patients. This practice has seen a drop of over 50% in income for the care of medical card patients since 2006.

f you are between 25 and 60 and have not had a cervical smear you can get one done for free under the HSE Cervical Check programme. The test is very simple and can help diagnose early cervical cancer. To register for a cervical smear, just login in to the cervical check website and provide your details including your PPS number. If you haven’t time to do this we will be happy to register for you once you provide us with your PPS number.

To get the smear done just make an appointment with us telling the receptionist it is for a cervical smear. Alternatively request an appointment using the link from this web site.

Results of smear tests are available within 4 weeks. You will contacted either by our practice or the cervical check programme.

To find out more about cervical check and cervical smears click the link to this video.

If you are planning an escape from the bad weather to some exotic destination, don’t forget to visit us for travel advice and vaccinations. At Kilmacud Medical Centre, we stock all of the common travel vaccinations and can provide you with information and advice on all of the common hazards of overseas travel. We subscribe to the Travax on line vaccination service so we are up to date with information on all of the latest infection out breaks across the world as well as region specific Malaria prophylaxis information. When you are booking a travel consultation, please let our reception staff know so that we can allocate you enough time to discuss your travel needs.

We would like to wish all our patients a Merry Christmas and a healthy new year. We will be open  on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve  up until 12:30pm. If you need a Doctor on Christmas Day, St. Stephen’s Day or New Year’s Day please phone EastDoc on 2094021. If EastDoc are unavailable or you feel you need a home visit call Doctor On Duty on 8300244.

Our building project is now complete and Kilmacud Medical Centre now has a fantastic new entrance as well as several upgrades and repairs to the building itself. We thank you for your patience and hope that you will find the upgrade will make it easier to get in and out of the centre.

We are delighted to announce that our practice nurse Karen Canning won the coveted Irish Practice Nurse Of The Year Award at this year’s IPNA conference in Athlone last weekend. The award recognises the promotion of Practice Nursing as well as academic achievement, innovation, leadership and patient satisfaction. The specialty of Practice Nursing has made huge progress in Ireland over the past ten years and Karen has been at the forefront of this. She has been pivotal in the development of a continuing professional development by setting up the south Dublin branch of the IPNA  and the award recognises this and other achievements.

Yes, its that time of year again when the days are getting shorter and the leaves are going brown and infections are on the rise. Influenza can be a life threatening infection for people over 65 or for those with chronic medical conditions. The Flu vaccine is now available from the surgery, so if you are over 65 or in one of the high risk groups please contact us to arrange an appointment. The flu vaccine is also recomended for Pregnant Women at any stage in pregnancy. Further information on this year’s vaccine and the eligible group can be got from the HSE immunisation website.

The vaccine is free to medical card holders. For those in one of the high risk groups but without a medical card the cost is €25.