Health guides, checked by the team who will see you

Often more than people expect, yes. It is not only where you end up that matters, but the order you travel in and anywhere you stop on the way, because some certificate requirements are triggered by passing through a country rather than staying in it.

Bring the whole itinerary when you come, including connecting flights and any overnight stops. We will work through it with you country by country.

No, and please do not talk yourself out of coming. Some protection started late is still worth having, some vaccines act faster than people assume, and a good deal of what we do is advice rather than injections.

Come in or call us with your dates. I would rather tell you honestly what fits in the time you have than have you travel with nothing.

It depends on where you are going and, just as much, on where you have travelled from. Some countries ask for the certificate only if you have passed through a risk area on the way, which is what catches people out on multi-stop trips.

Bring your full itinerary and we will check it against current guidance with you before anything is given.

Six to eight weeks before you fly is ideal, because some vaccines need more than one dose and a little time to work. If your trip is sooner than that, still come and see us. There is nearly always something useful we can do in the time you have, and I will tell you honestly what fits.

Your travel dates, where you are going, and any record of vaccines you have had before, if you have one. If you cannot find your records, do not let that stop you. We work with what you know.

A note of any medicines you take is helpful too, and that is all. We do the rest.

Yes, and it is often easier to see the whole family together. Which vaccines suit a child depends on their age and where you are going, so I look at each child individually rather than working from a list. Tell us their ages when you get in touch and we will make sure there is enough time.

You can come straight to us. For a set of common conditions, including sore throats, sinusitis, earache, shingles and uncomplicated urinary infections, a pharmacist can assess you and, where it is right, provide treatment on the NHS without a GP appointment.

If what you have needs a doctor, I will say so plainly and help you get there. Nobody leaves without a next step.

Then I tell you, straight away and in plain words, and I help with the next step. That might be a same-day call to your GP surgery, a referral, or advice on where to go if it should not wait. You will leave knowing exactly what to do next. That is the promise.

No. Pharmacy First is open to anyone registered with a GP practice in England, whoever that practice is.

You do not need to have used us before and you do not need to move your prescriptions to us afterwards.

No, you can walk in, though booking means you will not wait.

If we are busy, the pharmacist may ask you to come back at a set time rather than keep you standing in the shop.

The consultation is free on the NHS.

If you are given a medicine, the standard NHS prescription charge applies unless you are exempt.

Sometimes. Each condition has a nationally agreed pathway setting out when antibiotics are appropriate.

If they are not, the pharmacist will explain what will help instead. Being told you do not need antibiotics is a proper outcome of the appointment, not a refusal.

Yes. With your consent, a record of the consultation is sent to your GP practice so your notes stay up to date.

That is the point of the service being on the NHS rather than beside it: what happens here goes into the same record.

Yes, for the conditions where children are covered. Earache is for ages 1 to 17, sore throat from 5, and impetigo and infected insect bites from 1 year.

If your child falls outside the age range the pharmacist can still advise you, but treatment will need to come from your GP.

For most people it does not. Microsuction uses gentle suction under magnification, so nothing is pushed into the ear and no water is involved. You will hear the suction, which sounds louder than it feels, and each ear usually takes a few minutes. If anything is uncomfortable at any point, say so and we stop.

£50 for both ears and £35 for one, for a 20-minute appointment. That covers looking inside both ears and removing the wax where it is safe to do so. There is no separate examination fee and no booking fee. You pay at the pharmacy on the day. If you book both ears and only one needs treating, you pay £35.

Twenty minutes. The examination takes a few minutes at the start, removal itself is usually five to fifteen minutes depending on how hard the wax is, and we look again at the end to confirm the canal is clear. You will not be in and out in five minutes, and you will not be there an hour.

It helps. Olive oil drops twice a day for three to five days soften the wax and make it easier to remove, which often means clearing both ears in one visit. If you have not used drops, still come. We will tell you if a second appointment is needed.

We will tell you. Sometimes the symptoms come from something other than wax, and removing wax that is not there is not a treatment. We will explain what we can see in the ear canal and whether you should see your GP.

Often yes, and it is one of the main reasons microsuction is used. No water goes into the ear canal, which is what makes water-based methods unsuitable if the eardrum is not intact. It still depends on your own history, so tell us before we start.

In many areas it is no longer offered in general practice, and provision varies from one part of the country to another. It is worth asking your surgery first. If they cannot help, this is a private service you can book directly with us.

Yes. A small number of people feel briefly light-headed straight after, so sit for a few minutes before setting off. Most people notice the difference in their hearing immediately and leave without any after-effects.

Only when you have symptoms. Ears clean themselves, and routine removal is not necessary or advisable. People who wear hearing aids or in-ear headphones tend to build up wax faster and may need it two or three times a year.

No. Cotton buds push wax further down the canal and compact it against the eardrum, which is a common reason people end up needing microsuction in the first place. Ear candles are also ineffective and can cause burns.

If your hearing dropped suddenly, or you have discharge, bleeding, severe pain, or a foreign object in the ear, contact your GP or NHS 111 rather than booking wax removal. Those are signs of something other than wax build-up.

We’re at 94 Chessington Road, Ewell, Epsom, KT19 9UR, with step-free access from the pavement. There’s no parking outside, but there’s a car park at Ewell West station on Station Approach, and the Meadowview Road bus stop is right outside. We’re open until 6:30pm on weekdays and 4pm on Saturdays, and you can call us on 020 8393 1000.

Yes. Ask your GP surgery to nominate Miles Pharmacy, or tell us and we will arrange it with you. From then on your prescriptions reach us electronically and we get them ready. If something is not in stock we let you know before you set off, and we chase it.

Come and speak to us. In many cases a pharmacist can make an emergency supply of a medicine you take regularly, so you are not left without it. Bring the box or a previous label if you have it. If we cannot help on the day, we will tell you who can, and we will not leave you guessing.

Yes, and it is one of the simplest things you can do for yourself. High blood pressure usually has no symptoms, which is exactly why a five-minute check matters. If yours is fine, you have peace of mind. If it is higher than we would like, you have found out early, when there is most that can be done. Either way you leave knowing where you stand.

Mostly we talk. I want to hear what you have already tried, what got in the way, and what a good outcome would look like for you, because that is different for everybody.

I will go through your health history and the medicines you take, and check a few basic measurements with you. Nothing is decided on the spot unless you want it to be.

No. Everything happens in the consultation room with the door shut, including the scales.

If being weighed is something you would rather not do at all, say so when you come in. We can have the conversation without it and decide together what is useful to measure.

Not at all. Plenty of people come in to find out what the options are and go away to think about it, and that is a perfectly good use of the appointment.

If something is suitable for you I will explain what it involves and what it costs before you decide anything. You can take that away and come back.

A list of any medicines you take, including anything you have bought yourself, and anything you know about your own health history that a GP would have on file.

If you have recent readings from elsewhere - blood pressure, blood tests - bring those too. If you have none of it, come anyway; we work with what you know.

No. We ask a few questions because they affect which option is right for you, not to judge, and we ask them in the consultation room with the door closed. The sooner you come, the better it works, so please do not put it off because you are worried about the conversation. It is a short, private, ordinary part of what we do.

Not quite, and that is deliberate. The form sends us the service you want and the date that suits you. One of us then checks it is the right service for you and confirms the time with you directly. You will never find yourself booked into something that is not right for you.

Please do. That is what I am here for. Tell me what is going on in your own words and I will either point you to the right service or fetch the pharmacist to talk it through with you. You do not need to know the name of anything before you walk in.