Patients told surgery only open for half day
A GP surgery in Cardiff which has 10,000 registered patients will only open in the mornings in future due to major staffing problems, it has been revealed.
Cardiff and Vale University Health Board confirmed in a letter to patients that St David’s Medical Centre in Pentwyn will close every afternoon from Monday to Friday.
The announcement comes as Cardiff council, as part of its local development plan, intends to increase the population of north Cardiff by as many as 13,000 over the next few years.
Councillor Joseph Carter, of the Liberal Democrats, said reducing the hours would have a negative impact on residents living in his constituency of Pentwyn.
He said: “We are disappointed that the health board has unilaterally decided to close St David’s Medical Centre in the afternoons.
“This is a busy surgery with more than 10,000 patients using it. People tell us it was hard to get an appointment before and now it takes ages.”
In a letter to Cllr Carter the health board’s head of primary care contractor services, Sarah Griffiths, said plans were in place to develop the more modern Pontprennau Medical Centre to “absorb” 8,000 more patients.
Following approval from Welsh Government, the health board has set aside £500,000 to increase capacity at the Pontprennau site to accommodate those moving into new housing developments.
Cllr Carter added: “We welcome the health board looking to create extra capacity to serve the new residents but we need to get services right for existing residents.
“Whether we need an enlarged Pontprennau Medical Centre, or a new one for the new houses, this shouldn’t have an effect on services for my residents in Pentwyn.
“Councillors Dan Naughton, Emma Sandrey and I urge the health board to resolve these staffing issues and reopen our surgery fully.”
In the letter, Ms Griffiths said St David’s Medical Centre had experienced problems in administrative staff capacity as a result of employees leaving the practice.
She said: “[The practice is] not in a position to recruit to fill these positions currently whilst the plans for how their service will operate following the premises redevelopment are being worked through.
“To ensure there is minimum disruption to services, the partnership met and took the decision to close the branch surgery in the afternoon from Monday to Friday.
“However, opening times remain unchanged in the morning. The practice has confirmed that the impact on patients is minimal and patients have been informed of these changes.”
Cardiff and Vale University Health Board was asked to comment but could not give us a statement at the time of publication.