An extra £550 million of NHS funding has been announced by the Government to improve access to GPs, modernise GP surgeries, and improve out-of-hospital care.
Seven practices in Haringey – including the Vale Practice, Crouch Hall Road Surgery and Evergreen House Surgery – are receiving a share of the extra money.
For patients, this will mean:
- more evening and weekend, video, email and telephone consultations, the equivalent of 8,000 more appointments a day
- redevelopment of their existing practices, to increase clinical space and offer additional services
- greater access to pharmacists, nurses and speech therapists from local GP surgeries
- more personalised advice from pharmacists who will be able to access medical records
- more tests, treatments and services offered closer to people’s homes, including minor operations and blood tests
The Liberal Democrats are the only party to have pledged £8 billion in extra funding for the entire NHS – in line with advice from NHS England Chief Executive Simon Stevens.
Liberal Democrat candidate for Hornsey and Wood Green, Lynne Featherstone, commented:
“The extra funding is a welcome boost for our GPs, surgeries and local patients.
“Access to healthcare should be free at the point of delivery and based on need alone. That’s why this extra money to improve access to GPs and to modernise local services is so important. It should also go some way to reducing A&E traffic.
“The Lib Dems are the only party who have pledged an extra £8 billion for the NHS by 2020, so that even more vital improvements can be made to frontline services – in accordance with advice from NHS England.”
