GP surgeries 'under threat' amid budget cuts

Saintfield GP and British Medical Association member Dr David Ross said the cuts "came out of the blue" at the beginning of August, with 3.6 million being withdrawn by the Health and Social Care Board in what he said was 'an attack on frontline services'.

Dr Ross, who works at Saintfield Health Centre, commented: "I have been inundated by family doctors from across Northern Ireland who are angry, dismayed and disappointed at this cut.

"Health Minister Michael McGimpsey has repeatedly promised to protect frontline health services. If general practice and the services it provides isn't a frontline service then I don't know what is. Patients are going to suffer.

"The GP is the first port of call for nearly everything. We think this is so short-sighted and it will have a knock-on effect," he added.

The MA estimates the cut will mean the loss of approximately 10,000 per practice, and doctors fear it will lead to job losses, cuts to services, increased A&E waiting times, increased admissions to hospital, cuts to the treatment of diabetes, heart disease and stroke and patients having to stay longer in hospital.

Dr Ross, who also chairs the Eastern Local Medical Committee for GPs continued: "This cut to practice funding will decrease the ability of GPs and their staff to maintain the services that patients expect.

"GPs want to provide as much treatment as possible to people in the community, but this cut will make that more difficult and may well result in an increase in hospital referrals and decrease the ability of practices to co-operate with schemes that allow shorter hospital stays.

This will lead to increased overall costs to the health service.

"General practice is already under severe pressure and instead of being able to take on much needed additional staff, many practices are now having to look at reducing staff numbers or cutting working hours."

Hospital doctors have also expressed concern about the impact of the cuts.

Dr Paul Darragh, Chairman of the BMA's Council in Northern Ireland, who works in the Mid Ulster Hospital said, "General practice now provides many treatments that used to be carried out in hospitals in recent years, for example minor surgery, diabetic care and preventive treatment of heart disease and strokes. This is under threat."