1,300 rally to doctors’ cause

Jan 26 2008 by Audrey Barton, The Journal

A NORTHUMBERLAND doctors’ surgery threatened with drastic funding cuts is handing a protest petition with 1,300 signatures to the Government.

The Friends of Bellingham Surgery are fighting the cuts being imposed on it by the region’s care trust, which has a £14m debt and must save a further £11.9m to break even by April.

The surgery was threatened with closure after the first planned round of cuts which meant 24% would be shaved off its budget, equating to £129,000.

But doctors have been encouraged by the latest solution thrashed out by the Northumberland Local Medical Committee (LMC) which caps cuts at 3% over the next two financial years and aims to take more work from the hospitals to offset them.

Former Bellingham GP Iain Mungall said: “The Friends of Bellingham Surgery came into being to fight the threatened funding cuts to the doctors’ surgery in Bellingham.

“We would have had to cut so many staff and take such an enormous dip in income it wouldn’t have been possible to continue.

“Now thanks to the help of our patients the care trust has come up with a new deal.

“However, whatever the shape of the new deal, we are still left facing long-term issues of funding and transparency.”

The LMC and Northumberland Care Trust is yet to reach a formal agreement, but the petition is a testament to the strength of feeling in the rural community which depends on the surgery.

Bellingham is one of the most rural practices in England covering 800 square miles in Northumberland from the Scottish borders to the north and Barrasford to the south.

Dr Mungall added: “Almost half of our 3,000 patients have signed the petition which shows the strength of feeling against the cuts.

“This whole process for Friends of Bellingham Surgery started as this was completely inequitable targeting of rural areas.

“With the latest offer at least, it is not discriminating against rural practices.”

Dr Mungall is in favour of the latest offer which would see doctors carrying out more work such as tests for patients’ suitability for anaesthesia if they were having an operation, in primary care.

He said: “I think that would be accepted. But despite the negotiations there is nothing in writing that the LMC and the trust can agree on.”