Health / Walk-in clinic a ‘really good opportunity’ to improve healthcare, NHS Shetland says
Scottish Government to provide almost £1m for one-year pilot project
NHS SHETLAND says a new Lerwick walk-in GP clinic will improve healthcare access for Shetlanders struggling to get an appointment.
First minister John Swinney announced that Lerwick would be one of 16 sites chosen for the one-year government pilot during his visit to Shetland today (Tuesday).
The Scottish Government will provide just under £1 million – a total of £996,000 – to help fund the walk-in project in the isles.
It will be based at Grantfield, in the building which has most recently been used as a vaccination clinic.
Opening in late April, it will initially be open from 9am-5pm on weekends only before being extended through the week and to later nights.
Patients with only “minor illnesses” – such as chest, skin or urinary tract infections – will be seen at the walk-in clinic, with those with longer-term conditions continuing to see GPs at a health centre.
Speaking to Shetland News at the new walk-in clinic this morning, Swinney said he was confident from discussions with health board managers that it would be fully staffed.
“What’s encouraged me today is to listen to the healthcare professionals tell me how well this fits into their existing plans,” Swinney said.
“They’ve said this fits in very, very comfortably in what they’re doing in expanding access to services.
“They are delighted to have the investment the government is making because it will create more capacity between 12 and 8pm for people to pitch up without an appointment, seven days a week.”
Swinney added that the walk-in clinic “expands capacity right in the heart of Lerwick”, and would ease the pressures experienced at the Gilbert Bain Hospital.
The first minister said they wanted to avoid the “escalation of healthcare circumstances”, where people who did not get treatment then had to go to the accident and emergency department.
“If someone is able to come here, get attention to a medical issue, it avoids it being put off.”
Green election candidate Alex Armitage – himself a paediatrician with NHS Shetland – had previously criticised the move, labelling it a “pre-election stunt”.
He said it was not a healthcare solution that the people of Shetland needed.
Asked about this, Swinney said that it was NHS Shetland which had applied to be a part of the walk-in clinic project.
NHS Shetland’s pharmacy director Tony McDavitt said that feedback from patients had shown there was an “issue in terms of access” to health services for some people.
“We can see social media – people have experienced issues with accessing care,” he told Shetland News.
“We want to take a year to pilot this and see if it can work, if it can make a difference.
“This is a really good opportunity for us to benefit”.
He was confident that NHS Shetland would be able to fully staff the walk-in clinic too. The GP Joy programme is likely to be used to provide additional GPs in the area, he said.
“We’ll be looking to use some of the colleagues there to support opening,” McDavitt said.
“We’ll focus on weekends first then on to nights as well. We need to be honest that there will be some challenges, but we’ll manage that as best as we can.
“I’m optimistic that we will be able to source enough people.”
NHS Shetland chief executive Brian Chittick called the pilot project a “real opportunity to continue the improvements that we are on in primary care and community health”.
“This is part of realising that vision. It’s better access, a different type of access. It’s another opportunity to help our community access care.”
He said they knew from feedback that it could be “quite tricky” to access on the day healthcare.
McDavitt said they would be “really, really clear” with their communication to patients about what type of care the walk-in clinic would be overseeing.
He admitted it would “frustrating” for people to present with more serious, or long-term, ailments – and that NHS Shetland “need to avoid that”.
Chittick said the aim of the pilot would be to ease pressure on the hospital’s A&E department.
And public health director Susan Laidlaw stressed that the walk-in clinic would not interrupt NHS Shetland’s vaccination programme.
She said they would have enough time until the autumn programme to establish how they could work together, pointing to Shetland’s recent vaccination record as a cause for celebration.
McDavitt said the walk-in clinic “won’t be the only thing” NHS Shetland will be doing to improve healthcare locally.
“It’s an exciting time,” he said. “We have great teams across Shetland.
“This benefits the team and the people across Shetland, but doesn’t undermine the work that is being done.”
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