Residents have hit out at proposed plans to not re-open a highland Perthshire GP surgery which has been closed since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Blair Atholl surgery was closed when the pandemic hit and has not been open since.
Doctors at thee Atholl Medical Centre in Pitlochry, which operates the Blair Atholl site as a branch surgery, say they do not have the resource to re-open the site.
Instead, general medical services from their main surgery premises in Pitlochry.
They have now applied to the NHS to remove contractual obligations to provide care in Blair Atholl.
Highland Perthshire councillor, John Duff received a letter from the Perth and Kinross Health and Social Care Partnership outlining the main reasons GPs have applied for closure.
Reasons for closure
The reasons were listed as follows:
- A lack of available GP session to cover the Blair Atholl branch surgery as Atholl Medical Centre has been unable to recruit replacement partners after the retirement of the last two partners in 2021.
- GPs were working alone in the practice which is considered “unsafe working conditions”.
- The premises at Blair Atholl is not fit for current use despite the lease continuing to be in operation
- The premises has not been in use since closing in March 2020 due to the pandemic
- An increased workload across the primary care team exacerbated by Covid-19
A date of official closure has not yet been outlined as a report is yet to be presented at the integration joint board (IJB).
Once the report has been to the IJB, it will then come to the NHS Tayside Board to make a decision.
Locals sign petition against closure
Around 120 local residents have already signed at petition to keep the surgery open and angry patients say they have not been individually informed of the closure and more consultation is needed.
Rhona Metcalfe, Bridge of Tilt resident and patient at the surgery, said: “As local residents and patients, we were very shocked to see a notice regarding the potential closure of our surgery in Blair Atholl.
“Given its importance to the local area, we were expecting some sort of formal notification and a period of direct consultation with the patients.”
She added: “We feel incredibly let down that we were not informed via letter that we could lose this facility – we have many residents in Blair Atholl without a car and the local public transport is not frequent enough to be reliable to attend medical appointments.”
Conservative councillor Mr Duff also called for more consultation.
He said: “I understand the difficulties which the medical practice is experiencing.
“However, further consultation with the residents of the Blair Atholl area is needed before any final decision on the surgery’s future is made and I welcome the involvement of the health and social care partnership.”
“I know that people within the area are keen to explore possible solutions to keep the surgery open, whether in its current location, or elsewhere locally.
“I hope that a such a solution can be found allowing patients, especially the elderly or infirm, not to have to travel to Pitlochry to see their GP.”
The medical centre did not respond to a request for comment.
