GP surgery loss will isolate elderly, says petition

A petition was launched to save Ticehurst Surgery

Campaigners against the closure of the only GP surgery in Ticehurst have warned it could leave elderly patients isolated.

Wadhurst Medical Group wants to shut the practice in Ticehurst because a housing development is planned for the site at Newington Court.

But a petition to save the surgery, which nearly 900 people have already signed, has said patients will have to travel up to seven miles to see a doctor.

Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust said the surgery building was not fire safety compliant, while Rother District Council said there was no live planning application for the site.

In a letter to patients in Ticehurst, Wadhurst Medical Group said: "Southern Housing is planning a major development of the site, to provide much-needed affordable housing in the area."

It added it had "made the difficult decision to close the Ticehurst Surgery and permanently locate the services together on one site at Wadhurst Medical Centre" next spring.

Former BBC journalist and Green Party candidate for Bexhill and Battle Jonathan Kent, who set up the petition, told Radio Sussex: "It's going to cause real problems for local people if we lose the surgery.

"I know GP surgeries are under huge financial pressures, so people are looking to cut costs.

"But having decent GP services is essential... it becomes a downward spiral if you lose GP services. People's health declines and there's more pressure on the NHS."

He added some elderly people would struggle to access Wadhurst.

The petition said the closure would "put unmanageable pressure on Wadhurst surgery affecting people in all the surrounding villages".

Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust said: "Unfortunately, the Ticehurst surgery building is not fire safety compliant so we have had to consider how we can best deliver the much-needed care to our patients.

"All appointments provided at Ticehurst will be reproduced at Wadhurst Medical Centre which is approximately three miles away and all staff will remain in post with no reduction in service.

"We also plan to increase our GP capacity which will mean additional GP appointments will be available. Any of our patients who are housebound can request a home visit and this will continue to be the case."

The trust encouraged people to share their views in an open survey.