Last chance for Pennywell patients to have say on future of Monument Surgeries

Hundreds of patients have already shared their feedback via the survey since it was launched on 4 October.

Due to ongoing and severe staffing challenges and a lack of permanent GPs at the practice, Monument Surgeries is considering the long-term sustainability of services in Pennywell, which could mean the closure of the branch site in Pennywell.

Around 2,700 patients who are currently registered at Monument Surgeries in Pennywell, have been contacted directly and asked for their views in the survey, which closes tomorrow (November 26).

Dr Emily Hadaway is Head of GP Clinical Services at Sunderland GP Alliance said: “Your feedback is invaluable to us, so if you are a patient at Pennywell and you haven’t already had your say, I would urge you to do so now.

“I would like to thank everyone who has taken the time to complete the survey so far. People have been very honest with us and that’s exactly what we need so that we can understand how the proposed changes will affect patients before we do anything.

“In recent years it has been increasingly difficult for us to keep services going in Pennywell and our prime concern is always the wellbeing of our patients and making sure they have equal access to the highest quality of care.”

The branch site in Pennywell has been running solely with locum GPs and despite all best efforts to recruit a permanent salaried GP, there remains no substantive GP in place.

Challenges are also being faced from a nursing perspective with a practice nurse only available two days a week, leaving services fragile and vulnerable.

Consultation with patients and stakeholders into the future of Monument Surgeries in Pennywell is running between Monday 4 October to Friday 26 November 2021. A decision is expected at NHS Sunderland Clinical Commissioning Group’s Primary Care Commissioning Committee meeting in early 2022.

Click here for full details of the consultation and how to get involved.

Support your Echo and become a subscriber today.

Enjoy unlimited access to all of our news and sport, see fewer ads, experience faster load times, test your brain with daily puzzles and get access to exclusive newsletters.

Your support for our journalism means we can continue telling Sunderland’s stories for generations to come. Click here to subscribe - and click here to get a snapshot of the Echo’s news and sport to your inbox through our email newsletters.