#CrisisAtTheClinic: Issue facing local GPs "is not funding", says Gareth Davies MP
The Government's Autumn Budget outlined £8bn would be made available to the NHS and adult social care in England.
Last updated 18th Nov 2022
Stamford's MP says he speaks with patients and health bosses "every week" to ensure local healthcare standards don't drop.
It comes after our exclusive Crisis at the Clinic Investigation revealed over 2,000 patients had left Lakeside Healthcare at Stamford in the past two years.
MP for Grantham and Stamford Gareth Davies said the issue facing GPs "is not funding", and that it was recruitment which posed the biggest problem, especially in areas like Stamford and Rutland:
'The issue is partly down to rural areas like ours being able to attract new doctors into the area and doctors then retiring also, and so one of the things the Government are doing is reforming the contracts with GPs.'
READ MORE: #CrisisAtTheClinic: Stamford patients prevented from joining Rutland GP after mass exodus
'The government at a national level obviously provides record funding for the NHS overall, there's significant funding going on at a national level - an unprecedented level of funding.'
'There are improvements being made (at Lakeside at Stamford) but it hasn't been quick enough, and I've made that very clear to the Clinical Commissioning Group, but I am watching it very closely and continue to engage with both patients and those responsible, every single week.'
The Government said it's Autumn Budget, revealed on November 17, detailed that £8bn in funding would be made available for the NHS and adult social care in England in 2024-25.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “We are making 4,000 training places available for GPs each year and also offering a salary supplement to attract general practitioner trainees to work in areas of the country that have been hard to recruit in, including in the East Midlands."
Ready for the next inspection
Lakeside Healthcare said new staff roles had been created to help patients with less urgent issues be seen quicker by a specialist, and that they constantly monitored workforce needs and actively recruit when possible - but recognised that nationally, recruitment remains a significant challenge in healthcare.
In response to Lakeside's most recent care quality commission inspection, Teri White, who was recruited as part of an ongoing improvement strategy, said:
“As a team we are determined to get Lakeside Healthcare at Stamford to where it needs to be for our patients and stakeholders and have a positive relationship with our Patient Participation Group.
“We have made significant changes since the previous inspection, including employing more staff, restructuring our teams, introducing new management and upgrading our telephone system. We also deployed staff proactively to deal with areas of greatest demand and installed a new online consultation system, which is accessible out of surgery hours. This raft of measures was all aimed at improving administrative and clinical capacity and increasing access for patients, at a time of huge demand.
“Although we have carried out a massive amount of work in a relatively short space of time, as recognised in this report, we acknowledge that more needs to be done and so will carefully prioritise and tackle the actions identified by the CQC.
“I would like to thank my colleagues for their commitment and dedication. They have worked tirelessly, under constant pressure, and will continue to do so. Our team is realistic about the improvements we have implemented so far, but also about the continuing challenges that we are all working hard to resolve.”