New plan to avoid cuts in health care
Jan 11 2008 by Audrey Barton, The Journal
FAMILY doctors are hopeful they have found a solution which will stave off drastic cuts to services for patients.
GPs in Northumberland have warned of possible surgery closures, redundancies and harm to services as the county’s care trust tries to save £1.6m to balance its books.
More than 90 concerned doctors turned out for a meeting of Northumberland Local Medical Committee last night where a proposal to take more work from hospitals and prevent admissions was discussed in an effort to save the money.
The meeting was also attended by Lyn Dixon, executive director of service modernisation at the trust, which is wrestling with a £14m debt and must save £11.9m to break even.
Under the scheme, more work would be done in primary care for people with chronic conditions such as asthma and epilepsy so they would not go to hospital. And GPs would assess patients’ suitability for anaesthesia or blood tests rather than hospitals.
Dr Jane Lothian, medical secretary for the LMC and senior negotiator, said: “I think the new proposal holds the key to a solution. We believe we have found a way forward. This would enable us to reinvest the money into the primary care budget by altering the way the services are delivered.”
Doctors will have budget cuts of up to 3% in the next two financial years, in line with national NHS efficiency savings, rather than the 8% they were facing next financial year.
Dr Lothian said GPs had given a very positive reaction to the proposal and an agreement in principle is expected by January 21. The deadline for signing contracts is March 31.
Haydon Bridge GP Steven Ford said last night he was cautiously optimistic. “There is a definite mood of optimism, although this is not yet signed, sealed and delivered.
“Under the revised capping, the losses to practices will be small and hopefully offset by additional work that is to be transferred into the community.”
In a joint statement, Northumberland Care Trust and the Local Medical Committee said the new proposal would provide good quality services and value for money.
“It maintains the current services and allows for additional investment into primary care services, which will mean more patients will receive their health care closer to home and reduce the need to go to hospital.”
The care trust and the LMC have agreed that it would not be appropriate to release details of the proposal publicly until the LMC members have the opportunity to speak to GPs in the county.
The views of GPs, other NHS staff, council health overview and scrutiny committees, local MPs and members of the public have been taken into account during the negotiations.
Chief executive of Northumberland Care Trust, Chris Reed, said this proposal would ensure that the high quality GP services provided in the county would continue.
He said: “This proposal not only allows future investment in GP practices and primary care services, but also gives value for money for the public.
“Existing GP services will continue and if this agreement is reached, it sets a good foundation for the further development of primary care services for the benefit of patients in Northumberland.”
