Edinburgh walk-in GP clinic used more than 3000 times since February opening
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The Wester Hailes Walk-in GP Clinic has been used more than 3000 times since opening in February
A walk-in GP clinic in the Wester Hailes area of Edinburgh has been used more than 3,000 times since opening earlier this year, figures show.
Figures revealed by a Freedom of Information request show that the Wester Hailes Walk-in GP Clinic saw 2417 patients attending during its first three months in operation. The walk-in clinic, designed to tackle the ‘8.00am rush’ for GP appointments, opened its doors in February – and was the first of its kind in Scotland.
The clinic averaged a rate of 173 walk-in patients per week between its first week in operation in February and the week beginning May 11. According to the data, the week beginning March 23 was the busiest – with 231 walk-in patients.
Further figures revealed to the Edinburgh Evening News show that 3242 walk-in patients used the clinic until June 22. The walk-in clinic at Wester Hailes Healthy Living Centre is open every day from 12 noon to 8pm with no appointment needed.
Tracey McKigen, Director of Primary Care for NHS Lothian said: “The GP walk-in clinic is a new service which is currently only available to patients registered with a group of GP Practices in the South-West of Edinburgh. It has been operating for just over four months now and feedback from patients and staff has been positive so far. As this is a pilot project, it is being regularly monitored and reviewed.”
Announced in January, first minister John Swinney said that the clinics would “deliver over one million additional GP and nurse appointments” and make it “easier than ever for people to access urgent care when they need it most.”
The £36 million backed project saw plans for an initial 15 walk-in clinics to open across the country. To date six have opened in Edinburgh, Lochee, Benbecula, Stranraer, Hawick and Lerwick. A further five are set to open across the summer – with a total of 30 planned, however no timeframe has been established for this figure.
However, there was scepticism from the Royal College of General Practitioners when the police was announced. Dr Chris Williams, vice chair of the RCGP said the plans “do not represent a sound use of resources, nor are they likely to have any meaningful impact on the 8am rush for GP appointments.”
Dr Williams: “Our firm view is that the Scottish Government must rigorously evaluate the pilot and establish a clear exit strategy should walk in centres fail to reduce pressure on core services as we expect. The £36 million allocated to this pilot would be better spent supporting patients to access their trusted GP in a timely manner.”