Dave Thompson MSP

Dave Thompson, SNP MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, has welcomed the news that the NHS Pilot West Lochaber Medical Practice is currently being finalised. The Cabinet Secretary for Health, Alex Neil, gave an update on the pilot in response to a question from Mr Thompson.

The pilot will involve a team of eight doctors working in two sub teams, one based in Mallaig and the other in Acharacle, and there will also be an investment in telecare services for remote and rural networks.

Commenting on this, Dave said: “The NHS Pilot West Lochaber Medical Practice will look at new innovative ways to deliver healthcare in Mallaig, Arisaig, Small Isles and Ardnamurchan, and will also ensure that rural practices are able to attract sufficient GPs.

“I have been a keen advocate of this pilot, which has been heavily influenced by the proposals from the Dewar Group. NHS Highland have assured me that the Dewar Group have been heavily involved in all stages of the development of the pilot, and I am pleased that their valuable insight has been involved.

“Health professionals and patients in remote and rural communities face very different challenges to those in urban environments, and it is important that we have a health service which recognises this and operates in the most effective way possible.

“I believe that this pilot offers us a real opportunity to improve our health service, and can serve as an example of good practice across the Highlands and Islands, and other rural areas. I was pleased to hear from the Cabinet Secretary that the pilot is currently being finalised, which I’m sure will lead to innovative practice which can benefit the whole of the NHS.

Note:

Below are Dave’s question and the Cabinet Secretaries answer from the Official Report

6. Dave Thompson (Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making on attracting general practitioners to rural practices. (S4O-02287)

The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing (Alex Neil): I am grateful to the member, NHS Highland, the Dewar group, the Royal College of General Practitioners and others for their invaluable advice on the key issue of recruiting GPs in remote and rural areas.

The Government has promoted a range of initiatives on additional skills to support GPs who work in remote and rural areas. Those include the remote and rural fellowship scheme for newly qualified GPs and the remote and rural healthcare educational alliance.

Delivering safe and sustainable services in remote and rural areas, including island communities, is challenging. During my visit to Ardnamurchan on 28 January 2013, I announced that NHS Highland had been commissioned to develop a proposal, which will be relevant to all remote areas of Scotland, for new models of integrated healthcare delivery, in line with the healthcare quality strategy and working towards achieving the 2020 vision.

I am glad to say that the proposal is currently being finalised. Once that happens, I will consider the advice carefully in light of the recognised needs for alternative models of sustainable healthcare delivery in remote, rural and island communities.

Dave Thompson: I thank the cabinet secretary for coming along to Ardnamurchan to visit the communities there—that was very useful. For the pilot that he mentions, a local doctor, Dr Gartshore, is working to create a much larger practice to replace a number of individual single-GP practices. Can the cabinet secretary give me any further information on the timescale for implementation of the new pilot project?

Alex Neil: On the project, a team of eight doctors will work in two sub-teams, one based in Mallaig and the other in Acharacle. NHS Highland is working on the recruitment of suitable applicants to ensure the continuation of out-of-hours services as well as the full range of routine care and treatment. That is in addition to the investment that we are making in telecare services in remote and rural areas specifically and across the wider health service network.