The NHS looks increasingly likely to close four out of the five threatened surgeries in Brighton and Hove.
The surgeries are run by The Practice (Group) Limited in Bevendean, Hangleton, Whitehawk, North Street, in Brighton, and Morley Street, in Brighton.
But The Practice gave notice on its contract to run the five surgeries when NHS England said that it was looking to reduce payments to the company.
It was due to pull out in June but has extended its notice period until September in at least one case and until January for the homeless practice in Morley Street.
NHS England, the part of the National Health Service responsible for doctors’ surgeries in Brighton and Hove, held a panel meeting yesterday (Tuesday 1 March) to discuss the matter.
Officials believe that the surgeries are too small to survive in their current format and favour “dispersing” their patient lists.
They are under pressure to make an exception for the 1,400 homeless patients registered with the specialist practice in Morley Street. Even there, the well-regarded surgery may move to other premises.
About 11,500 patients are affected across the five GP surgeries and some of them have already tried to register elsewhere.
But some neighbouring doctors’ surgeries have redrawn their boundaries or closed their lists. Others have discouraged patients from moving yet.
NHS England wrote to patients in January although some patients have criticised the letter as being hard to understand and said that it created panic and confusion rather than provided reassurance.
Some campaigners criticised NHS England for not admitting patients to the panel meeting yesterday.
Officials have promised to reveal their hand in the coming fortnight but are maintaining silence to prevent panic, oblivious to criticism that their silence is fuelling fear and uncertainty.
At least one critic said that in reality they were delaying the delivery of bad news and giving people as little time as possible to challenge the planned closures.
NHS England has previously said that there is too little time to run a proper procurement process to find a new provider for the existing surgeries.
However, elsewhere in the country, such as Wokingham, surgeries are being “commissioned” and providers found within six months.
The pattern of reassurance and the suspicion that closure announcements are imminent follow the much-criticised handling of the closures of Eaton Place surgery in Brighton and Goodwood Court in Hove last year.
NHS England is believed to want far fewer but much bigger surgeries despite the transport and financial difficulties that this would present for the poorest and least mobile patients.
In Bevendean, where the Willows surgery is one of the five surgeries facing closure, hundreds of people signed a petition in just a few hours to try to save the practice.
In Whitehawk a high proportion of the patients registered with The Practice in the past year after the closure of Eaton Place in Kemp Town.
Further news is expected in about a week’s time.
Having just moved from Wokingham, it seems ironic to compare.
Wokingham has a fantastic surgery on amazing facilities which is being destroyed by the population. I was a part of the patient group and saw how the surgery bent over back wards to try and meet increasing demands in an environment of decreasing funding. They introduced phone calls but the demand I saw at first hand has become unrelenting. The doctors tried to rationalise their time for their own survival and this has lead to completely unreasonable complaints and even a parliamentary enquiry.
I realised it is us patients that are destroying thr NHS – either by over demanding want or not realising the source of the issues come from government.