Government ‘committed’ to family doctors

The Department of Health has underlined its dedication to family doctor services.

On a visit to a newly-opened GP health centre in Kirkby-in-Ashfield, health minister Ben Bradshaw restated the government’s commitment to investment in this area.

Speaking at the health centre near Nottingham, Mr Bradshaw announced plans for three community hospitals in the south-east, with each customised to offer services suited to the communities they serve.

These include extended opening hours for GPs and other primary care practitioners and the situating of diagnostics and outpatients closer to people’s homes.

The government said that it had invested an additional 250 million pounds for a new GP health centre in all 152 primary care trust areas, as well as funding over 100 new GP practices in the areas of most need.

Mr Bradshaw said: “There has been a lot of irresponsible scaremongering over recent months that the government is planning to close local GP surgeries and replace them with larger centralised health centres.”

He added that under government plans, members of the public would have access to new GP services around the country with longer opening hours in addition to their local GP practice.

In April 2008, the Royal College of General Practitioners said that patients must continue to appreciate the differences between GPs and pharmacists if the role of the latter is to expand.