Portland Medical Centre

THE DOCTORS

Dr Sheila V O'Hara (Female) MB ChB

Dr O'Hara, our senior partner, is a full-time GP who qualified in Manchester in 1969. She became a GP trainer in 1981, is chairperson of the local GP trainer group and also sits on the Croydon Local Medical Committee. She is a clinical governance facilitator and GP appraiser for Croydon Primary Care Trust and is a tutor for medical students at Guy's, King's and St Thomas' Medical School. She has two grown-up children and is a grandmother.

Special interests: Developmental paediatrics, women's health and teaching.

Dr Ravi Sondhi (Male) BSc (Hons) MBBS MBA

After qualifying at St George's (London) in 1984, Dr Sondhi left medicine for four years to pursue a business career before returning to Croydon to complete a two-year vocational training scheme. He completed his GP training at this practice and became a partner in October 1991. Dr Sondhi is currently medical director of Croydoc (the local out-of-hours service) and chairman of the professional executive committee at the Croydon Primary Care Trust. He is married to a GP and has three children.

Special interests: Gastroenterology, urology and antenatal care.

Dr Paddy Jackson (Female) BA (Hons) MB ChB

Born and brought up in India, Dr Jackson completed her education at Durham University (Chinese Honours 1978) and Manchester University (Medicine 1988). She finished her vocational training as a GP in Croydon in 1993 and, following a period at another Croydon surgery, became a full-time partner at Portland Medical Centre in September 1995. She currently holds a clinical assistant post in dermatology at Mayday Hospital and is a tutor for Guy’s, King’s and St Thomas’ Medical School. Dr Jackson is married to a teacher and has three young sons.

Special interests: Diabetes, dermatology and cardiology.

Dr Jaimin Patel (Male) MBBS DCH DRCOG MRCGP

Dr Patel qualified at Guy's, King's and St Thomas' in 1999. After gaining clinical experience at Mayday University Hospital, Dr Patel completed his GP training at a local practice and joined us on a full-time basis in August 2003. He is also an educational supervisor for Foundation 2 Doctors from Guy’s King’s and St. Thomas’ Medical School.

Special interests: Sports medicine, minor operations, antenatal care and developmental paediatrics.

Dr Yogesh Contractor (Male) MBBS MS FRCS MRCGP

After qualifying in India in 1990, Dr Contractor spent several years gaining experience in a hospital environment before joining us in August 2003. Since completing his GP training Dr Contractor has worked at a number of practices across Croydon and is now a full-time member of our staff. He is married with two children.

Special Interests: Minor surgery, joint injections and child health.

Dr Oge Ilegbune (Female) MBBS

Dr Oge (as she is known) qualified in Nigeria in 1998, and after gaining clinical experience mostly at Mayday and East Surrey hospitals, completed her GP training at Portland Medical Centre in July 2006 and immediately took up a full-time post with the Portland/Whitworth Group. Dr Oge is married with two young children.

Special interests: Child health and obstetrics.

Dr Almas Rehman (Female) MBBS MRCGP DCH

Dr Rehman qualified at the Royal Free and University College Medical School, London in 2002 and gained most of her clinical experience at Mayday and other local hospitals before completing her GP training at a Croydon GP Practice. She has been a full-time member of our clinical team since early 2007.

Special interests: Child health, antenatal care, family planning.

GP REGISTRAR

The Portland Medical Centre is an accredited GP training practice. GP registrars are qualified doctors who have completed all the necessary medical training, and wish to further their careers in general practice. They conduct their own surgeries, and may consult with the partners when necessary.

OUR PRIMARY HEALTH CARE TEAM

Practice Manager Vicky Bernard

Operations Manager Julie Watts

Senior Receptionist Dee Mathews

Senior Practice Nurse Kay Paul

Practice Nurses

Zoe Williams, Tracey Leone & Sonia Archer

Our nurses are available by appointment for general advice and routine procedures. They offer a full health promotion service including diabetes, asthma, coronary heart disease, hypertension, well woman (including cervical smears), well man, family planning, immunisations, travel vaccinations and advice, HRT and weight counselling. We also have two health care assistants, Jane Papanastasiou and Pauline Smith, to complement the team.

Health Visitors

Our attached health visitors are based at Tollgate Children's Centre. They are registered nurses with additional qualifications, who specialise in the care of children under five. They are available throughout the week to give advice and support to families with babies and young children and can be contacted on 020 8655 5682. The health visitors hold a child health clinic once a week, at the surgery between 2.00 and 4.00pm on Tuesday afternoons. This is an open clinic and no appointment is necessary. The recommended developmental assessments are by appointment, as are home visits. Our patients are also welcome to attend the child health clinics held throughout the week at Woodside Health Centre and the Shirley Clinic. Leaflets detailing the days and times of clinics are available at reception.

Community Midwives

The community midwives work with the doctors to provide care and advice throughout the pregnancy and postnatal period.

Antenatal appointments are provided on various days throughout the week by our specialist GP and on Wednesdays by the midwives. To contact the community midwives please telephone 020 8401 3000 (or a message can be left at the surgery).

District Nurses

Our district nursing team provides treatment and advice to the housebound and patients recently discharged from hospital. They also provide counselling and support to the terminally ill. They take referrals from GPs and hospitals as well as self-referrals and can be contacted on 020 8656 0213, or via the surgery.