Surgeries ‘are not going to be closed’

The futures of Leecon Way surgery, in Rochford, and Hawkwell Park Drive Surgery, in Hawkwell, have been hanging in the balance since Doctor Asim Sen died in 2006.

Patients launched a campaign to save their local surgeries, fearing they would have to travel for miles to visit a doctor.

South East Essex Primary Care Trust has now signed a 15-year lease on the surgeries, so the search is now on to find an independent GP to run them.

However, Jason McGinley, of Hawkwell and Rochford Patient Forum Group, said he would not be celebrating yet, because patients had been let down too often in the past.

In fact, he said PCT's announcement raised more questions about what would happen with the site.

He said: "How long do they expect to keep it open?

"Is it a temporary measure? And what are they going to do now to get the patient numbers back, which they referred to other surgeries?

"Each patient means money per head, and they shipped about a thousand of them out last year when they were trying to close them down."

Mr McGinley said no one had yet taken up the tender because they were put off by a six-month break clause in the lease, imposed by the PCT.

He feared this was putting off GPs, as they could invest in the sites and then be forced to leave a few months later.

Ian Stidson, deputy director of commissioning and contracting for the PCT, said: "We are delighted to say the leases on the premises for both Leecon Way and Hawkwell Park Drive have now been signed.

"We fully understand the concerns of patients regarding the length of time the negotiations have taken.

"So we would like to reassure them the time taken has not been unduly longer than any similar lease negotiations.

"We are committed to tendering the service to find an independent provider to provide GP services in the future."

Leaflets and posters will be placed in doctors' surgeries to inform patients and the PCT said they had sent an e-mail to the patients' forum.