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Predicted population growth to guide plans for urgent care




Health experts are re-visiting research on population growth after it was announced that there would be changes to urgent care.

Newark and Sherwood Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), the organisation that plans and buys local healthcare services, has been working with the public to shape the future of urgent care in Newark.

Dr Thilan Bartholomeuz, GP and clinical chairman of Newark and Sherwood CCG, said: “As GPs we have to continually plan and adapt services to meet the needs of our local population.

“We know, from analysis of public health data, that population growth expected in Newark over the next decade will bring younger families to the area ­— increasing demand for GP and community services, rather than the complex hospital care more often required by older people.

“But we also need to maintain the right mix of services to treat people in the most suitable place away from hospital unless it’s a genuine emergency.

“Last year we launched an evening and weekend appointment service across the area, which has been a massive success.

“As we expand to meet patient demand we need to design services that can likewise provide clinical advice, assessments and urgent care at all times of the day.”

The Urgent Care Centre is to be re-named the Urgent Treatment Centre.
The Urgent Care Centre is to be re-named the Urgent Treatment Centre.

Research conducted by Solutions for Public Health in 2016 will steer plans to redesign local urgent care services as well as predict the demand on local GPs and other health services.

The research predicts the Newark population will grow by between 8,000 and 14,000 by 2026 ­— depending on progress of two new housing estates at Fernwood and south of Newark.

According to the research, over the long-term the developments will create up to 5,850 new homes, which will put more pressure on the local NHS as well as other public services.

A series of public meetings have aimed to give insight into the way the local population use the centre as well as other services, such as the out-of-hours GP services and NHS 111.

Feedback from those events will be used alongside the public health data to design a urgent care service tailored to the needs of people in Newark.

The chief executive of Newark and Sherwood CCG, Amanda Sullivan, said: “Over the coming year almost 150 walk-in centres, urgent care centres and minor injury units will adopt a common set of standards so that people know where to go when they need treatment fast but it’s not an emergency.

“Our job is to make sure that the new urgent treatment centre meets the needs of our growing population and that it complements other urgent care services.

“We also need to make sure that residents of Newark and the surrounding areas play a key role in forming these plans.

“That is why we are working with local people to design a service ­— based on the national urgent treatment model ­— that can deliver what citizens need now and in the future.”

A series of public events have been held by the Clinical Commissioning Group in partnership Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust, which operates the urgent care centre at Newark Hospital.

The third and final event takes place tomorrow, 6.30pm to 8.30pm, at the Holy Trinity Community and Partnership Centre, Newark.



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