Montgomeryshire AM, Russell George, has said that the potential closure of the GP surgery in Llansanffraid due to cost pressures would be a huge blow to the local community.
The Llanfyllin Group Practice – which administers four surgery sites in Llanfyllin, Llansanffraid, Llanrhaeadr and Four Crosses – has stated in a public meeting, that it will no longer be offering GP, nurse or dispensing services from Llansanffraid from 1st August.
The Group Practice has identified two main reasons for the proposed closure, the first being the economic unviability of the practice – due to the GPs contract that was brought in by the Welsh Government in 2004 – and the second is that the Local Health Board has hired the premises to deliver local primary care services.
Commenting Mr George said:
“I am very alarmed to hear that a rural GP practice is going to remove services from a community because it believes it is economically unviable to carry on.
“If doctors at the practice are citing the GP contract as the principal reason forcing this closure, then the Welsh Government and the minister responsible have questions to answer.
“While I appreciate the Local Health Board will continue to deliver other primary health services from the site, for the 800 plus residents who live in and around Llansanffraid, they will have to undertake at least an 8 mile round trip to have access to a doctor; for the sickest and most vulnerable in that community that is unacceptable.
“I have written to the Health Minister asking her to urgently examine this issue because I am concerned that the underlying contractual issues, coupled with Welsh Government health cuts, are going to disproportionately affect rural GP practices not just in Montgomeryshire but right across Wales.”
Ian Harrison, Chairman of the MontgomeryshireConservative Association who attended the meeting said:
“There has been a doctor’s surgery in Llansanffraid for over 100 years, so this announcement has clearly devastated the whole community.
“We haven’t given up hope that this surgery can be saved and I am certainly pleased that we have the full support of our AM on this issue.”
