Virtue Medical is our GP service, specialising in medicine for the older person. Our practice operates from our Health and Wellness Centre on Pottery Rd, Dun Laoghaire.
We believe that prevention is better than cure and our medical team will actively monitor you for key risk areas and put in place any preventative programs that they believe are necessary. The team monitor closely those with risk factors associated with Diabetes, Asthma, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and Cardiovascular disease as these are common illnesses that can have major impacts on the quality of life of the older person.
Our GP works alongside a highly skilled team of clinicians including Nurses, Physiotherapists and Occupational Therapists. All of these experts will be there for you as required and with your permission, relevant medical information will be shared and integrated across your healthcare team.
Virtue Integrated Care have established relationships with trusted partners including Dieticians and Nutritionists, chiropodists, dental services, counselling and psychotherapists, mobile diagnostic scanning, and acupuncture. We can assist with arranging appointments and with permission, communicate with these disciplines to ensure coordinated care provision.
Our lead Nurse Suzanne O’Neill preforms a dual role within Virtue Integrated Care. She is a linchpin member of the healthcare team, supporting our GP in providing clinical care within the GP Practice and in our clients’ homes. She also plays a key role in training and supervising our team of home care assistants to ensure they are providing the highest quality, bespoke support based on each clients’ individual needs.
Suzanne’s previous training and experience includes general practice nursing, convalescence medical care at home, diabetes research, general hospital nursing.
She can provide primary healthcare in the form of regular blood pressure checks, blood tests, chronic disease management, vaccinations, wound care and health and lifestyle advice.
Our Mobility and Rehab Team, led by our Physiotherapist and Occupational therapist, work with our clients:
Independent living and improving and extending quality of life in later years is key for our physiotherapist. We provide group and individualised rehab classes for people with chronic illnesses. These sessions provide people with the skills and tools to maintain and increase their activity levels and reduce the impact of their conditions on their lives.
Exercise and rehabilitation are key components of improving health and independent living and should be adopted and continued into later life. We will take into account any specific needs or limitations you may have and create a programme that works for you. Whether it be overcoming a short-term health condition, managing a chronic condition, or simply improving quality of life, physiotherapy and physical activity can have a big impact on your optimal health and wellbeing.
We firmly believe that doing things we enjoy has a positive impact on our health and wellbeing. As we age, taking part in activities that are important to us often becomes more difficult. An Occupational Therapist or OT can help identify these everyday activities that are causing difficulty for you. Once an assessment is conducted your OT can help by adapting the task and recommending changes that will make it easier. For example, following a hip replacement someone may find it difficult to get in and out of the bath. A shower board or grab rails could be fitted in the bathroom to make this easier. An OT may also teach an alternative way to do the activity such as stepping over the bath with the un-operated side first.
By using a range of techniques to improve ability such as amending the environment or recommending equipment, we can facilitate you to regain or improve your independence, reside safely at home, and thrive in your later years.
I have a long-standing special interest in care for the older person, complex care and hospital admission avoidance.
I graduated in Medicine and Physiology from Cardiff University, going on to work over Wales before heading to London to gain membership to the Royal College of General Practitioners. I trained as an elderly care registrar within the emergency department of the Royal Free Hospital for two years and as an academic associate in University College London.
I aim to provide excellent planned medical care, ‘proactive care’, with an emphasis on moving away from an illness-based approach to a wellness based one. This uses the skills of the whole team within Integrated Care and beyond into the wider community to include the excellent nursing and social care staff as well as dieticians, pharmacists, speech and language therapists, physiotherapists, and the teams within the local hospitals.
Getting older can be a difficult time for people and their families. I hope that having a GP who is experience, approachable and accessible will go some way to alleviating some of the stress and worry.
I very much look forward to meeting you and your families.
Dr. Geraint Warlow
Sarah trained in Tallaght University Hospital and graduated in 2007. Sarah has worked 13years in General Practice. Prior to commencing Nursing she worked for five years in a Nursing Home. Sarah’s area of interest are Chronic Disease Management. Sarah is prone to a spot of Gardening!
I think that the daily visits from Virtue Integrated Care has helped me a lot with my memory day to day. I particularly enjoy the social interaction and activities with my personal assistant’s and I am very happy with the service that is being provided.
Gladys Factor
We had a very positive experience in all of our dealings with Virtue Integrated Care during the global pandemic. From the first phone call with the office to the nurse, Suzanne and the physio, we were impressed with the speed and efficiency of the service.
Anonymous
We were very happy with the service provided by Virtue Integrated Care. Your empathy and support was much appreciated especially at a time when I felt no one in the state services seemed to care or wanted to help. I think the Virtue Integrated Care business model is very innovative and will be a great success.
Loraine Fegan