A Stockton GP surgery threatened with closure under an NHS service review has been thrown a lifeline.
More than 1,800 patients were initially told they might have to find a new GP if the controversial plans to close the Stockton Health Centre in Hardwick were approved.
While there are no other practices in the ward, NHS England said there was a choice of 11 alternative primary care providers within a 1.6 mile radius, and had warned “doing nothing is not an option”.
But the plans were met with concern from patients and local councillors, who say the area already suffers from health inequalities and the closure could exacerbate this further.
Other concerns raised included elderly and disabled patients having to travel further afield to see a GP.
But following a public consultation launched by NHS England’s Durham, Darlington & Tees Area, NHS England is now proposing extending the current contract of the practice until March 31, 2016.
From the consultation NHS England was told the practice “serves a population with a high degree of need”.
Issues were also raised relating to the access to primary care services across Stockton “which people feel may be detrimentally affected significant changes to the provision at Stockton Health Centre”.
If the current provider does not wish to extend the contract, then the NHS Area Team said it “will need to consider the risk this presents to patients registered at these practices and look to take steps to ensure care services”.
As of last month 1,859 patients were registered at the practice at Tithebarn House, High Newham Road - higher than the anticipated registered list size of 1,500.
Around 74% of the registered population live in Hardwick ward and a further 18% live in the neighbouring Roseworth.
Local councillors Jim Beall and Barbara Inman, for Roseworth, and Norma Stephenson and Nigel Cooke for Hardwick, had lobbied against the closure plans.
Cllr Beall described the stay of execution for the clinic as “a partial result”.
He said it gave he and his local colleagues the opportunity to advocate “that there is still a need for a service of some kind of description in Hardwick”.
“This part of Stockton is a growing area and at the end of the day all those people still need GPs,” he said.
“What we’re saying is just have an ordinary GP service.”
NHS England’s Durham, Darlington & Tees area team is reviewing some GP practices across Teesside “to evaluate quality, demand, value for money and need”.
The review is examining Alternative Provider Medical Services (APMS) contracts that were initially set up by the scrapped Primary Care Trusts and are due to expire by the end of March 2015.
The NHS England area team are now reviewing the results of the consultation and expect the new arrangements to be in place from April 1 2015.
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