PATIENTS of a Forest doctors surgery were concerned to hear the practice is at risk of closure last week.
The local NHS is seeking feedback from patients about their priority services and how a closure, “if this became the preferred option”, would impact them.
The team at Mitcheldean Surgery have delivered services at Drybrook on a temporary basis since December, which the practices said was due to the surgery having faced “significant pressures” in recent times.
It was hoped that Drybrook becoming a branch of Mitcheldean would make it “a stronger surgery able to offer high quality care to patients well into the future”.
But the NHS says that “unfortunately”, Mitcheldean are unable to continuing providing services at Drybrook after June 1.
The letter from Helen Goodey, Director of Locality Development and Primary Care at NHS Gloucestershire, reads: “The Mitcheldean team have worked really hard with the existing Drybrook staff to provide a good service for patients and stepped up to provide a solution at a time when we needed them the most.
“NHS Gloucestershire is very grateful for all the help and support from the Mitcheldean team.”
A survey is being circulated amongst patients to gather feedback, but as June 1 is only a few months away, they only have until 12pm next Tuesday (April 11) to complete it.
The letter continues: “NHS Gloucestershire understands the importance of Drybrook Surgery to the local population and will be taking this, as well as a range of other factors, into account when making its decision.
“We do wish to be completely transparent with patients about the possibility of Drybrook Surgery closing, as this is one of the potential solutions being considered.
“Another possible solution we are exploring is a new provider taking over the service as part of a branch surgery model or as a standalone contract (although it is unclear the extent to which there are any providers who would be able to take the practice on and whether these solutions are possible in any event, taking into account a range of different factors).”
For more information and to complete the survey online, see the ‘News’ section at www.drybrooksurgery.nhs.uk.