GPs’ 5,800 patients need new surgery
Medical centre to close months after ‘Requires Improvement’ CQC rating
NEARLY 6,000 patients will have to find a new surgery after a group of GPs handed back their NHS contract.
Brockhurst Medical Centre in Gosport is due to close at the end of December after its GPs gave formal notification to the NHS Fareham and Gosport Clinical Commissioning Group.
The practice sees more than 5,800 patients, who will all have to be transferred to other practices in Go sport so that they can continue to access primary care.
The CCG is currently considering a number of options for the ‘ managed transfer’ which it aims to facilitate to avoid too much extra pressure being put on the other practices in the borough.
Managing director at Fareham and Gosport Clinical Commissioning Group, Sara Tiller said: ‘Services are due to continue as usual at Brockhurst Medical Centre until the end of December 2020, and patients will still be able to see the same GPs and staff in the meantime.
‘The most important thing is that registered patients continue to use their local GP practice – there is no need to change and we ask patients to do nothing until they hear further from us.
‘The CCG is writing to every patient registered at the practice to infor m them about the news, which we fully understand and recognise could be disappointing and unsettling, and inviting them to state their top three preferences for an alter nate practice.’
Patients will receive further news from the CCG to infor m them of the decision and the plans going forward.
Ms Tiller added: ‘We fully understand, and respect, the decision made by the practice and know how highly-regarded they are by their patients.
‘The CCG will be working very closely with the practice in the coming months ahead, to ensure a smooth transition.
‘This is obviously an unsettling time for the staff at the practice and we would ask that the team are allowed to focus on continuing their day-to-day role of keeping their practice running as efficiently as ever.’
The surgery got a ‘Requires Improvement’ rating from the Care Quality Commission in February last year.
Inspectors said staff treated patients with ‘ kindness, respect and compassion’ but the practice was ‘unable to provide evidence that the required training had been completed by staff.’