Sheffield NHS GP services expand to create more appointments and new services
Three new GP hubs being built and eight practices expanding
Updated GP services in Sheffield have created capacity for an extra 147,000 patient appointments.
A £2.7m NHS investment has seen 28 new rooms added to eight city practices.
They are Firth Park Medical Centre, Duke Medical Centre, Page Hall Medical Centre, Selbourne Road Medical Centre, Lodge Moor Surgery, Broomhill Surgery, Park Practice and Norwood Medical Practice.
Three surgeries have also had lifts installed to make them more accessible.
Sheffield City Council’s health scrutiny sub-committee last week (September 10) also heard about progress on three big projects to deliver new primary care hubs at a total cost of £37m.
Spital Hill Health Centre has seen the relocation of Burngreave Surgery and Sheffield Medical Centre to a new building that opened to patients in March.
The practices merged in July, partly to support the retirement of the lone GP who ran Sheffield Medical Centre.
The conversion of the former Royal Bank of Scotland into the City Centre Primary Care Hub on Church Street is set to be completed by May 2027.
The centre will bring together the nearby Clover City and Mulberry practices under one roof.
Work started in July on the SAPA 2 Primary Care Hub in Wordsworth Avenue, Parson Cross and is due to be completed next September. This brings together The Healthcare Surgery and Buchanan Road Surgery.
Ian Atkinson of NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) told councillors that the new buildings also have space to offer additional health services including digital imaging that patients would previously have had to travel further to access.
Councillor Sophie Crossthorn asked whether Sheffield would have a ‘health on the high street’ centre such as the one in the Alhambra Centre in Barnsley that has been hailed as a major success.
Mr Atkinson responded that changes to diagnostic services are being looked at but this is more likely to involve several centres in local areas. This is because Sheffield is far bigger than Barnsley.
Councillors were keen to hear that NHS plans take into account the needs of a growing city population.
Abigail Tebbs from the ICB explained that detailed planning takes place to ensure that communities’ changing needs are being met.
Committee chair Coun Ruth Milsom commented following the meeting: “Primary care is the main front door to healthcare for the majority of people. If we don’t get this right, the system suffers.”