Kirkby Practice - impending closure

It is with regret, that the PPG has learned that the Kirkby Practice will close at the end of July. Please note: 

DVMP WILL REMAIN OPEN AT BOTH THE BROUGHTON AND ASKAM SURGERIES. 

It is the writer's understanding that this situation has been precipitated by a recent ultimatum issued by the Kirkby practice BUILDING owner (Dr Helen Clayson, if the writer's memory is to be relied upon), and was taken with deep regret by the practice partners.

However, the practice survives, and we the patients will still benefit from a rural service that puts many a town/city practice to shame. To compensate for the loss of Kirkby surgery, there will be increased cover at the Askam and Broughton surgeries.

 Please find below the 'official letter' concerning the closure:

  

INFORMATION RE THE CLOSURE OF KIRKBY SURGERY BUILDING - 31 JULY 2026

Duddon Valley Medical Practice (DVMP) is NOT closing.

 The Kirkby surgery building will cease to be used as a surgery building from 31 July 2026 and the building is to be sold by the current owner.

DVMP will continue to be fully operational nevertheless and will only deliver medical services from Broughton and Askam surgery buildings after the 31 July 2026.

 DVMP is not buying the Kirkby surgery property as a going concern, despite being given the opportunity to do so.   

This decision was not taken lightly and for many reasons.

Access to Broughton and Askam surgery buildings will be significantly increased after 31 July 2026 to accommodate the needs of our patients when the Kirkby surgery building finally closes.  

We apologise for the short notice of only three months re the closure of the surgery at Kirkby.   

We hope you understand that the decision NOT to buy Kirkby surgery as a going concern will improve economic resilience and increase stability for patients and staff alike during what is a very difficult economic climate nationally.  Rural practices have been closing across the country at a rate of one per week but, DVMP has no intention of closing.

 We promise to provide further information to you all very soon re the planning involved re closing the Kirkby surgery building.  

In the meantime, we would appreciate your cooperation by not distracting our staff from carrying out their duties by asking for further information about the closure from them.  We WILL provide further information to you as soon as possible to help prevent any unnecessary anxieties during this 3-month transition period from three surgery buildings, to two.

Many thanks for your understanding.

 Dr LA Wilson and Dr L Gunasinghe

 

Watch this space for further information and please try to understand that though this decision will cause inconvenience to some, the long term viability of the practice as a whole has been a top priority in the decision process, as the writer understands it.

 Bernadette Adams 

  

 

New Partner

 DVMP PPG is pleased to welcome a new practice partner: Dr Lakshan Gunasinghe, who took up his post in January of this year.

Dr Gunasinghe's presence in the practice is crucial to the stability and long-term viabilty of the practice, in a period when the NHS faces turbulent times.

We hope that all patients will give him a warm welcome!

 

Respect and Consideration

 

As patients we expect to receive respect and consideration from doctors, nurses and practice staff. Like most relationships these expectations work both ways. It should be a no-brainer that we treat these persons, who after all, spend their lives trying to help us, with similar courtesy.

Alas, that is not always the case.

As in every organisation, NHS staff in every sort of practice from Hospital, to GP practice, to the local Pharmacy, have to conform to regulations, protocols and the constraints of the availability of services at any given time. They cannot conjure up appointments at will, nor can they supply prescription medicines at the drop of the hat. Being rude or trying to bully staff will not change these facts, but will just lower staff morale and make it more likely that staff will seek employment in a less fraught place of employment.

Good staff are invaluable in any organisation– we do not want to lose them from our GP practices and other areas of the NHS.

Everyone should be aware that there is an NHS Zero tolerance policy to abuse of NHS staff by anybody, internally or externally. That means any abuse, be it verbal, physical or racial.

There are of course less obvious, but possibly more toxic methods of abuse, that wear down the morale of people over a longer period, but are possibly more insidious in the long term. I speak of the casual but repeated, sniping and gossiping where the good name of the practice, it’s practitioners and its staff are derided, criticised or demeaned by the odd bit of vitriol dripped into the ears of fellow patients, or members of staff less likely to be equipped to deal with such poison. The criticism may be delivered in the form of a joke or a seemingly mild observation. The damage done is nevertheless the same.

The people who deliver this sort of vitriol are sometimes seemingly pillars of the community – ones who you would expect to support people doing their best in an increasingly difficult NHS structure; not criticize it unnecessarily.

So beware those people who persistently deliver negativity – they are helping no-one, including themselves.

Finally, and regrettably, be aware of those who conduct their vile behaviour via social media. The internet is powerful, but whatever you put out into the world on those platforms, either directly or in a supporting role, is still subject to the laws of the country.

The laws of slander and libel still hold, and some racist behaviours can be prosecuted under the heading of hate crimes.

No-one wants to get into that form of extreme reaction, of course.

So respect, show consideration, and be kind. You feel happier with yourself when you do!

 If you wish to make a complaint, suggestion, or comment and feel awkward about doing so, you may email this blog, and we will pass your message on ANONYMOUSLY to the practice. All communications are read in the utmost confidence. Email address: duddonvalleyppg @ gmail.com (please remove spaces when emailing us.) Please indicate if you wish us to keep your email on record or not. 

B  

The Hive

 

Whilst this is strictly not a PPG issue, I think that many patients of the practice might be interested in joining this group on a Monday morning in Askam (LA16 7BD). I attend myself with husband John, and have found it great fun, and useful. It is sponsored somehow via the NHS, though not through DVMP, and I suppose its original purpose was to get people out of their houses, meeting up, having a chat , and putting their brains in gear! No doubt it is good for your mental health too!

It's very informal, very friendly and only mildly competitive (in a friendly way). We have lots of laughs, and there is quite a bit of informative chit-chat between activities. Most weeks there will be a bingo game (a beetle drive has been mooted!), some brain twister game, but the real focus is on the quiz!

As the group is quite small at the moment, the quiz is run on a collective basis - those present against the quiz book. So all win or lose together. If the numbers increase significantly, then this arrangement might change. Still, it gets the brain cells moving on a Monday morning!

There is a wide variety of people attending, so don't worry about whether you will fit in or not - you will. The group is very open and welcoming.

Tea, coffee and biscuits are included in the £1 fee. So join us on Monday mornings at 11.00 at the Askam Rugby Club Clubhouse. I'm sure you will enjoy it!.

ALL WELCOME!

A map to help you locate the Rugby Club - see RC in red about halfway down the map and slightly to the left. Postcode for your sat-nav : LA16 7BD

Bernadette

An ECG readout courtesy of: Ptrump16, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

 

You may, or may not have heard that GPs in our area are embarking on a 'collective action' in the New Year. Below is a copy of the official letter sent out by the group of practices involved in our local Primary Care Network. 

The action will involve some routine services being referred elsewhere, instead of being done at your local GP practice. (The practice staff have information on how your needs will be met.)This action is being taken because, whilst the tests/ procedures etcetera will be paid for by the NHS if they are done in say a hospital; if the GP does the test, the practice will NOT BE PAID for these procedures by the NHS. This is plainly unfair (and has been going on for a considerable length of time), and considering the increasing pressures put on to GP practices (both professionally and financially), should not be allowed to continue.

This DOES NOT AFFECT you receiving any tests which your GP considers clinically necessary when you present as a patient with signs or symptoms that need investigation. These will be carried out as normal, in practice (if appropriate), as required.

As a Patient Participation Group, our remit is to ensure that good communication exists between the practice and its patients. However, there has to be a GP practice extant for that to take place, and it is a fact of life that some GP practices around the country, have been forced to close because the current GP NHS funding is increasingly inadequate to maintain services as required by the GP NHS contract. The proposed rise in National Insurance contributions paid by employers is just another financial burden that will exacerbate their current problems.

Fortunately DVMP is managing at the moment, but it is incumbent upon us to support the practice - we need our GP practices - I'm sure none of us would argue with that! So please be as supportive and understanding as you can.

 

GP Collective Action

Posted on: 20th December 2024

20^th December 2024

Dear Patients,

We are writing to inform you about important changes to the services at your GP practice, as part of necessary Collective Action by General Practice. This action involves all four local practices: Dr Murray and Partners, Hoad Medical Practice, Market Street Medical Practice, and Duddon Valley Medical Practice, and aims to address critical issues we face.

What is Collective Action?

Essentially Collective Action is:

• Referring work that we are not funded to do to other services
• Ensuring that the workload is at a safe level for both patients and staff

Why Collective Action is Needed:

We are concerned about:

• Patient Safety: We feel that it is essential that increasing workload does not affect the high quality of care we want to continue to provide our patients.
• Workforce: High workloads are causing burnout and making it hard to recruit and retain staff.
• Funding: General practice is underfunded, receiving just 6% of the NHS budget, which is not enough to meet ever growing demand.
• 
  

This Collective Action is not about GPs striking or pay, but about advocating for more investment in primary care to ensure we can continue to provide safe, high-quality care for all our patients.

What This Means for You:

Starting 1st January 2025, some tasks, which we are not funded to deliver, will be referred to other organisations. We will be unable to provide the following tasks:

•              Insulin initiation

•              ECGs

•              PSA monitoring for hospital consultants

•              MGUS monitoring for hospital consultants

•              Consultant-requested blood tests, spirometry, and other tests

•              Vaginal ring pessaries

Additionally, we will be unable to provide wound dressings and prostate cancer injections from 1st April 2025 unless a fair agreement is reached.

Our practice will remain open.  We will continue to prioritise your health and wellbeing in everything we do. We remain committed to providing high quality, patient focussed care. However, we can no longer absorb unfunded work from other sectors, especially with rising costs. We have raised these issues with NHS England, Morecambe Bay Hospital Trust, and our local MP, but we have not yet reached an agreement.

How You Can Help:

• Be kind to our staff – they are doing their best to help you.
• Spread the word and explain why these changes are happening.
• Support your GP in challenging negative perceptions.
• Contact the ICB and your MP to raise your concerns about the underfunding of your General Practice.
• Integrated Care Board (ICB): lscicb-bl.healthierlsc.scnlbprimary@nhs.net 
• Michelle Scrogham MP: michelle.scrogham.mp@parliament.uk 

General practice is struggling. Together, we can make a change. Thank you for your understanding and support.

Yours sincerely,

Dr Murray and Partners
Hoad Medical Practice
Market Street Medical Practice
Duddon Valley Medical Practice

News update

Stethoscope courtesy of Freepik

So, there are changes coming!

From the 22nd of November, Broughton and Askam Surgeries will be closing early on Fridays. So the new times (for Fridays only) will be:

Fridays only (Askam and Broughton)  8.00 am to 1.00 pm

Please also note that the Practice need 7 working days to process your prescriptions (not including weekends and days closed). So, please make sure that you get your prescriptions in nice and early! This compares favourably to other practices where 8 days are the norm!

Please note that the practice now has three Doctors: Dr Wilson, Doctor Singh, and Doctor Min Tun.

 

Improving the NHS App

Happy New Year! 

Further to our earlier post about the NHS App, at the last meeting of the PPG, a few difficulties were voiced about ordering certain medicines on the NHS App. As you know, DVMP has no control over the App, so if you do encounter any problems, please contact the website administrators directly, via:

Contact us about the NHS website (www.nhs.uk)

Please do not feel awkward about airing your views. Computer programmers tend to be young and will not have encountered every single problem that we, the Great British Public, come across in our every day lives. They need our help and experience to improve this service.