The Laurels Development
Significant changes are being planned for the Laurels Healthy Living Centre in order to improve access to a broader range of services and to extend opening hours. There are currently two GP practices based at the Laurels, the Laurels Medical Practice and the Primary Medical Service. The PMS practice is currently being managed by Haringey Primary Care Trust which is in the process of putting the contract out to tender.
In the summer Lord Darzi’s report, High Quality Care for All, was published stating that additional resources would be allocated to allow Primary Care Trusts to establish 152 GP- led health centres. The report sets out NHS aims to;
- Give patients more information and choice, including choice of GP
- Help people stay healthy as well as treating them when they are sick
- Enable frontline staff to initiate change to improve the quality of care
- Support and develop NHS staff
The new practices must be in place by April 2009.
In the Haringey GP Patient Survey (Completed October 2007) 16% of respondents said they were dissatisfied with the access to existing GP services. In particular, patients said that they wanted more evening, early morning and weekend appointments. Patients want to see a healthcare professional at a time that they need it, not necessarily using A&E services or NHS Direct.
Haringey PCT proposes making the Laurels into a GP led health centre open 8am-8pm, seven days a week and providing GP or practice nurse services to registered patients as well as patients who are registered with other practices. GPs and healthcare professionals based at the Laurels are supportive of the proposed changes. It is up to the PCT, in consultation with the public and local professionals how to organise new services.
It is anticipated that the new services at the Laurels will increase the capacity of the healthy living centre and patient registrations are expected to rise from 14,000 to 20,000 within a year.
Haringey Primary Care Trust (HPCT) is working jointly with Enfield Primary Care Trust in order to deliver on GP led health centres and hopes to have the new service in place by April 2009.
An advertisement for expressions of interest for the provision of NHS Primary Medical Care and related services was published in the Health service Journal on September 11 2008. The PCT have received over 130 expressions of interest from diverse providers including local GP practices as well as large scale health providers. The procurement panel will include a community representative.
Haringey Overview and Scrutiny panel visited the Laurels on September 3rd and made recommendations on how to support local GP practices with the open tender for the GP led practice.
James Slater, Director of Primary Care and Performance, presented to the Overview and Scrutiny Panel on October 6th 2008 explaining that the PCT was not changing, but enhancing the Laurels service for which a one month consultation period is required. Panel members raised concerns about the consultation process for the proposed changes to service delivery at the Laurels.
The PCT organised a consultation process to engage the opinions of Laurels’ patients and local people. Patients were invited to attend a series of three consultation events at the Laurels on October 28th ,29th & 30th were David Lyons, Primary Care Lead, East Haringey, presented HPCT plans to expand services and to ask patients and local people to contribute their views.
Patients unable to attend the consultation events were asked to contribute their priorities for primary care delivery.
Patients were asked to rank their priorities for making the following changes at the Laurels;
- Extended open hours
- Diagnostic services
- Increased range of treatments e.g. physiotherapy, back care & specialist clinics
- Improved appointment systems
- Provision of health related advice services e.g. health promotion, welfare rights, access to health and social care services
- Increased time with GP
Additional funding from NHS London has been secured to pay for improvements to the building to maximise the capacity of the Laurels.
The NDC and the PCT are working closely to ensure that local people are properly consulted about future plans for the health centre and that patients are receive accurate and updated information about service development at the Laurels.
For further Information please contact Mohamed Hammoudan
on: Email: mohamed.hammoudan@haringey.gov.uk
Tel: 020 8489 8714 Mobile: 07870157705
