Burnage Walk-In Health Centre Closure questioned in Parliament
Article published: Sunday, December 13th 2009
Controversy surrounding the closure of the Burnage NHS Walk-In centre reached the House of Commons this week as local Liberal Democrat MP John Leech addressed Gordon Brown on the issue in this week’s Prime Minister’s Question Time.
The centre was granted a stay of execution at the end of last months after 500 local residents signed a petition protesting at the proposed closure on 1 December. A new closure date was set for the beginning of January 2010.
The decision to close the centre was made by NHS Manchester, the Primary Care Trust, who are responsible for overseeing the distribution of services in the area.
In a report published earlier this year figures showed that the impact of walk-in centres has had a minimal effect in lessening the burden on GPs and Accident and Emergency departments.
Mr Leech is to present the petition to the government in the coming week. He asked the Prime Minister: “Given that he has said frontline services should not be affected will he join me in condemning the decision of NHS Manchester in closing the centre against the decision of local people?”
Mr Brown refused to condemn the closure saying that “hundreds” of GPs had opened in the area and that the matter was for NHS Manchester to decide. In a bid to highlight the Labour government’s success in dealing with community health services Mr Brown said: “Look, we have invested an additional £250 million in hundreds of new GP practices in poorly serviced areas and 152 new health centres. This is a matter for decision by the local NHS together with patients and others.”
Perhaps before presenting Number 10 the residents petition Mr Leech should have asked Mr Brown to try and register with a GP in South Manchester and then think about cutting back on the accessible non-emergency health services.
Samantha Bradey
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More: Manchester, News
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The report mentioned can be found on the BMJ website here: http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/326/7388/532?ijkey=4qYNlcA/7IVCM#SEC3
Comment by michaelp on December 13, 2009 at 5:56 pm
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