Our ace reporter, Nigella Garage is still stuck in Dullbridge and this week she’s been trying to get an appointment with a doctor.
This week I’ve been investigating reports that it’s impossible to get an appointment to see a medical practitioner in either Smalltown or Dullbridge.
Recent difficulties at Smalltown Surgery has seen them being forced to close their books to new patients, with residents being told to sign up with any available medical centre within a 94 mile radius. This has led to complaints from people who claim that having to travel long distances to see a doctor is ridiculous, especially if they don’t drive.
The nearest alternative, Dullbridge Surgery, is also under pressure with one of the highest rates of patients per area in Somerset, behind North Botherton and Yeoman GP surgeries. Dullbridge’s surgery has a whopping 4,090 patients per doctor.
Doctors are only supposed to have 1500 patients each.
It is expected that the current situation will only get worse as, when the planning application was put in for the development of 500 houses at Blue Farm, permission was refused for a doctors surgery on the grounds that it wasn’t needed.
Dullbridge Surgery is now run by a commercial company, Phil Harmonica Healthcare Services and was itself in special measures for some time because the service was practically non-existent. As the doctors are paid per patient it is no wonder they’re opposed to another surgery. Think of all the money it’s bringing in.
The lowest patient/doctor ratio figures are in nearby Cheese with 740 patients per doctor, but good luck getting there if you don’t have a car.
Local Councillors have made no obvious effort to get another surgery in the town bearing in mind that the present one is on the border with Smalltown.
(Editor – Nigella, are you OK, hun? You sound a bit grumpy.
I’m fine, Sir. I’ve been trying to get a repeat prescription for my HRT patches and, although I’ve had the surgery on redial for 72 hours I just can’t get anyone at the surgery to answer the phone.)