Northumberland loses 10 GP practices in a decade

A total of 68% of surgeries in Northumberland are deemed to be too small

Northumberland has lost 10 GP practices in the past 10 years, with the number of patients increasing, figures show.

The county currently has 36 practices operating from 61 sites, 10 less than in 2013-14.

The figures, given to Northumberland County Council's Health and Wellbeing Board, show remaining services serve 333,900 patients, an increase of 12,000 since the same period.

They also show 75% of surgeries are more than 30 years old.

A maintenance backlog of £250,000 has also been identified, the information given to Friday's meeting showed, while 68% of surgeries are deemed as too small.

Despite this, board members were told NHS staff across Northumberland were delivering more appointments than before the pandemic.

However, demand has also risen significantly, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The figures were presented as part of a drive to improve patient experience for those accessing primary care in Northumberland.

'Top of agenda'

Pamela Phelps, senior head of commissioning primary care at the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board, told the meeting: "Understanding the needs is very much at the heart of what we do.

"We do get a lot of complaints, but we also get a lot of compliments as well.

"We're providing more appointments than ever before but patient satisfaction isn't as high as it should be, so this should stay at the top of the agenda."

Hilary Snowdon, of the Local Medical Committee, said patient experience was "at the heart" of primary care.

She added: "It's not just about patients being care for by their GP, but by their primary care team including nurses and physiotherapists.

"We are providing much more appointments than we did before Covid.

"We are working with colleagues to understand demand."