IMPROVEMENTS PROPOSED TO GWENT AREA OUT OF HOURS SERVICE

Local Health Boards in the Gwent area are commencing public consultation to obtain the views of local people and patients on proposed improvements to the way in which GP Out of Hours Services are provided.

The GP Out of Hours Service provides care for more than 600,000 people across the Gwent area. It provides access to a GP or other health professional, for those patients who are in need of urgent medical attention or advice outside the normal working hours of GP surgeries.

These proposals for improvement have been based on a comprehensive review of the Service, which has been undertaken with patients and local health professionals. The review focused on the quality and types of services provided for patients. It has become clear to Local Health Boards that changes are required to continue to improve the quality of the service and maintain expected standards of care for patients.

The consultation document proposes a new model of services for the Gwent area, which concentrates on three Primary Care Out of Hours Centres, located in Ystrad Mynach Hospital, St Woolos Hospital, Newport and Nevill Hall Hospital in Abergavenny. These changes have been designed to improve access to services that are of the highest quality and safety for patients and provide better integration with existing services.

The consultation programme will run for three months until Monday 31 July 2006. There will be a range of opportunities for local people to say what they think about the current service and the proposals for a new model of GP Out of Hours services.

Judith Paget, chief executive of Caerphilly LHB, said: ‘‘The Local Health Boards in the Gwent area would like to emphasise that important decisions have to be made now to improve quality for the future of out of hours services. Patients and the public have vital roles to play in informing these decisions through their ideas about and experiences of using local out of hours services.”

Further information about the proposed improvements and the public consultation programme can be obtained from Caerphilly Local Health Board by calling 01443 862056 or emailing enquiry@caerphillylhb.wales.nhs.uk