Extend GP surgery hours, says group
Saturday opening would ‘ease pressure’on A&E
A patients’ group wants to see opening hours at GP surgeries extended in a bid to take the pressure off struggling A&E departments like University Hospital Hairmyres.
Doctors’ surgeries, including four in East Kilbride, opened on Saturday mornings this month as health chiefs coped with a winter meltdown.
However, in an interview with the News, NHS Lanarkshire’s medical director Dr Iain Wallace said this move was unlikely to become permanent.
But Margaret Moncrieff, chair of South Lanarkshire Health and Social Care Forum, told the News they believe the extended hours should continue.
“The extended opening hours is something the forum would like to see continue,” said Ms Moncrieff. “It would take a lot of pressure off A&E and the out-of-hours service.
“The extended opening hours in January seems to have helped ease the situation and by continuing it on a more permanent basis it would help those who work full-time and find it difficult to get appointments.”
University Hospital Hairmyres continues to lag behind NHS Lanarkshire’s other two acute sites at Monklands in Airdrie and Wishaw, according to figures released for the week ending Sunday, January 14.
The statistics showed that 76.1 per cent of patients at Hairmyres were seen within the four-hour target; below the Scottish Government target of 95 per cent and the weekly average for both NHS Lanarkshire and Scotland.
But this was an increase on 62.4 per cent for the previous week.
In total, 44 patients waited over eight hours and 14 patients waited more than 12 hours.
Performance was once again below Monklands, which exceeded the government target with 97.2 per cent of patients seen within four hours.
At Wishaw, 87.6 per cent of patients were seen in that time.
The average for NHS Lanarkshire was 87.5 per cent while the Scottish average was 85.8 per cent.
Ms Moncrieff was quick to praise hard-working staff and said: “The forum gives its overwhelming support to the efforts of all the staff under what has been very difficult circumstances. “We have also had feedback from patients who have used Hairmyres in recent weeks and have told us they have been looked after in an extremely caring and professional manner in what has been trying circumstances for everyone within the NHS.
“The forum believes everyone is doing as much as they can.”
While the forum have concerns around waiting times, its chair feels health chiefs are responding.
“Patients do raise concerns about waiting times but I do feel people understand NHS Lanarkshire is doing as much as they can to address the issue,” Ms Moncrieff continued.
“In many ways circumstances have dictated to them with increased falls and the like from frosty weather.”
Margaret Meek, deputy director of hospital services at University Hospital Hairmyres, said: “The most recent published weekly figures show an improvement and we are pleased that our unscheduled care performance is on an upward trajectory.
“However, we are not complacent and we will continue to work hard to reduce waiting times for our patients.
“Our staff have worked tremendously hard under very challenging circumstances and I would like to thank them for their efforts.”