'Hands off our Shropdoc!'

A mother who believes Shropdoc saved her son’s life has insisted that the out-of-hours GP service needs to stay in Shropshire.

The popular organisation is set to lose its contract, with NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Integrated Care Board (ICB) saying it intends to award to it Wiltshire-based, Medvivo.

Health bosses have maintained the decision is not to do with making financial cuts, and the procurement process was not carried out ‘unlawfully’.

Shropdoc has been in a fixture in the count for nearly 30 years, and news that it could lose its contract has been met with a lot of anger.

A petition to save the service has reached over 13,000 signatures, while a letter has also been sent to Health Secretary, Wes Streeting.

The ‘standstill’ period for the procurement process has been extended due to  representations being made challenging the decision.

Shropshire Defend Our NHS, the Shropshire Green Party, and a coalition of local groups and residents, met outside The Guildhall in Shrewsbury on Thursday (February 27) to highlight their case.

“I really feel passionately about saving Shropdoc,” said Teri Trickett, from Bayston Hill.

“I have personal experiences with Shropdoc. When my son, who is now all grown up, was a baby and had a respiratory infection.

“I was quite a young, nervous mum, but they came out, reassured me and got him all the right treatment. I feel they saved his life.

“I would never want a mum to be in a position whereby she wasn’t seen because it was a company making profit that didn’t get there quick enough.

“Shropdoc needs to stay as a not-for-profit organisation, run by our GPs who know us in Shropshire.”

Councillor Julia Evans (Greens, Radbrook), who is the secretary of Shropshire Defend our NHS, said Shropdoc has been part of people’s DNA in Shropshire for so long.

“They’re local GPs who know us and the geography, and the relationships that have been built are important,” said Cllr Evans.

“These are real things that improve services. We are worried about how they’re going to save this money.”

The protest was held prior to a full council meeting. A motion put forward by Councillor Bernie Bentick (Lib Dems, Meole) was carried for the authority to ask the ICB to halt the procurement process until futher scrutiny has been carried out.

This includes the timings of the previous contracts, to whom they were awarded, to confirm the precise amount of any reduction in the value of the proposed contract, and how this will affect the existing service provision.

The council will also ask health bosses that, whether the contract has been awarded por not, to fully engage with Shropshire’s residents and health watchdogs before drawing up any revised contracts for GP out of hours and  any new services, and to regularly report to the Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee on how the contract is performing.

“Unlike Shrodoc, Medvivo is a for-profit organisation,” said Cllr Bentick.

“Given the bid is for £6.5million a year equivalent, we could see up to £2 million a year taken out of the services to Shropshire’s patients and taxpayers.

“We need to have sufficient reassurance that there won’t be a drop in quality or the ability to fulfill the contract.”