GPS in Kent town plan to stop taking new patients

GP surgeries in a seaside town want to collectively close their doors to new patients amid safety concerns.

The practices in Folkestone have said that taking more patients on would pose a risk to those who currently use their services.

Seven of the eight GP practices in the Kent town have applied to their local clinical commissioning group to close their lists to new patients.

In a statement in Pulse magazine, the surgeries said: “As a consequence of the national GP shortage which has been acutely felt in Folkestone, with a shortage of 16 full-time equivalent GPS, we have no other option in the interest of patient safety.”