DUNOON’s new GP walk-in centre has been hailed as a real asset to the community by Scotland’s Health Secretary – as plans progress towards longer opening hours.
Angela Constance visited the pilot service at Cowal Community Hospital on Thursday morning, meeting patients and clinical staff just weeks after the centre opened its doors.
The walk-in service launched on June 26 to provide additional same-day GP care for people with non-emergency conditions.
It currently operates on a limited pilot basis, with appointments available two days a week from noon until early evening.
However, Ms Constance confirmed ministers expect GP walk-in centres to eventually operate from noon until 8pm, seven days a week.
She said: I was able to meet clinical staff and patients at the pilot walk-in centre in Dunoon, which just opened earlier this summer but is already making a huge difference to people.
I heard how this is a real asset to local health services in Argyll and Bute and I thank all of the staff who are working hard to deliver this service.
The Dunoon centre forms part of a wider move to make urgent GP care easier to access, with similar services expected to be rolled out to more communities.
Ms Constance added: We have promised to make it easier to access GP care and the walk-in service in Dunoon is already giving patients access to urgent, same-day consultations.
We will roll this out to many more communities over the weeks and months ahead. Ministers expect that all GP walk-in centres when fully operational will offer opening hours of 12-8pm, seven days a week and I look forward to seeing Dunoon’s progress as longer opening hours are phased in.
The service was deliberately launched on a limited basis, allowing Argyll and Bute Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) to monitor demand, capacity, patient outcomes and feedback before determining how it should develop.
It is intended to complement rather than replace existing GP provision, offering another route to same-day care for patients who do not require emergency treatment.
Ms Constance said improving access to primary care could also help prevent conditions escalating and reduce pressure elsewhere in the NHS.
Our focus is not simply on counting every patient, but on making every patient count, on catching problems early before they progress, she said.
This can play a key role in helping ease pressure on hospitals and acute services.
Eilidh Gallagher, Head of Primary Care for Argyll and Bute HSCP, welcomed the Health Secretary to Cowal Community Hospital and said the pilot was among a number of new approaches being developed locally.
She said: Our new strategic plan requires us to have a focus on service sustainability, prevention, and person-centred care.
The walk-in centre is a key part of a number of new service models in Cowal and work is underway to ensure that we take forward those developments that have the greatest impact on patient outcomes.
The pilot will continue to be monitored before decisions are made on its future development and expansion.
