Fearon welcomes Minister’s rural commitment | Latest Newry News, Newry Sport and Newry Business for Newry City

Fearon welcomes Minister’s rural commitment

Sinn Féin MLA Megan Fearon has welcomed Health Minister Michelle O’Neill’s commitment to rural GP services.

fearon14The South Armagh representative said she was delighted to hear Minister O’Neill make specific mention of rural GP services following her announcement of a further £900,000 investment in GP Federations.

The Minister made the announcement following a meeting with the BMA General Practice Committee Chair, Dr Tom Black to discuss a range of issues facing GP surgeries.

The Minister said, “I am very aware of the increasing demand for GP services and I have had an opportunity today to listen to the concerns of the BMA GP Committee about the sustainability of General Practice.”

“I have been clear about my determination to move the focus of our system from acute services to primary and community care. I’m announcing a further investment of over £900k in GP Federations. This funding will help broaden the skills mix in primary care as well as enhance capacity to meet growing patient demand.

“Working together through Federations will help GPs find new ways of working to address the challenges they face. It is particularly important that we ensure small rural and single handed practices are supported to continue to deliver services in their communities.

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Annie newry times box ad“The investment I am announcing today should be of particular benefit to these smaller surgeries that will benefit from the economies of scale that working as part of a Federation could bring.”

The Minister added, “GPs are at the centre of our health and care system and I intend to build on the positive steps that have already been taken to support these services, including the investment of £1.2m to fund additional GP training places and the £7m invested into the GP contract this year.”

Emphasising her commitment to driving long term reform in health and social care Michelle O’Neill said, “In addition to the investment I have announced I will be carefully considering the recommendations from the recent GP led Care Review in developing my long-term plans for the continued provision of high quality GP services and I look forward to continuing to work with the BMA General Practice Committee.”

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Posted by on Aug 2 2016. Filed under Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

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