New Welbourne Health Centre aims to improve GP access in Tottenham Hale
The new Welbourne Health Centre opened its doors to patients in July, providing GP appointments for 25,000 patients and helping to address the shortfall in appointments in the North East of Haringey.
The Centre, set over three floors, features 24 consultation rooms, as well as a variety of other spaces for clinicians including GPs, pharmacists and more.
The Lawrence House Group, a GP practice with surgeries in Haringey has also moved its Hale Village (Tottenham Hale Medical Practice) and Dowsett Road (Dowsett Road Surgery) medical centres to the new site.
GP access in Tottenham Hale 2014
Healthwatch Haringey conducted a local survey and reported in 2014 following complaints from residents of Hale Village and the surrounding area of Ferry Lane about a lack of GP services. Problems with accessing a GP had been exacerbated by the new developments in the area and the closure of the satellite GP service on the Ferry Lane estate.
All the evidence, both qualitative and quantitative, described in the report confirmed that residents in Tottenham Hale had serious difficulty accessing local GP services. This was within the context of poor GP access in the wider North East collaborative area.
Key findings from our survey
The detailed comments from Hale Village and Ferry Lane residents were:
- We cannot access the GP services we need for ourselves and our families
- There is no point in registering with a local GP as we cannot get an appointment
- When we do get an appointment the service often falls below the standards we could reasonably expect
Healthwatch Haringey identified the need for 3.5 more GPs to increase the avalibilty of GP appointments and account for the population increase in Tottenham Hale. The projected 1,900 new homes in the area's Housing Zone bid would warrant two further GPs. However, additional nurses, healthcare assistants and administrative staff were also required for the growing population.
Key outcomes
The key outcomes of our research were:
- The findings and recommendations made in our report were approved by Haringey Council's Health and Wellbeing Board.
- Short, medium and long term primary care strategies were established by NHS England for Haringey. The long term plan included the proposals for four health centres.
- A new GP surgery was set up in Tottenham Hale as a short-term measure to cope with demand in the area.
