A major change in the provision of health care in Frome and its surrounding villages has recently been announced.
From this month the Walk-In Clinic, currently based at the Community Hospital, will be moving down the road to its new location inside the Frome Medical Centre building.
The Walk-In Clinic provides a ‘no appointment’ service for patients wishing to obtain same day non-urgent medical advice and or treatment. It is open on Mondays to Fridays from 8.30am to 5.30pm and for emergencies only from 5.30pm to 6.30pm.
The Walk-In Clinic is manned and managed by the Frome Medical Practice. One of the partners at the Practice, Dr David Powell, explains the reasons for the move. He said, “This really is positive news. On the 14th July the Walk-In Clinic will be moving to the first floor of the Frome Medical Centre at Enos Way.
“Over the past year we have been working hard to improve the level of service at the Walk-In Clinic and this move is simply part of that continuing development. With sometimes limited resources and faced with a national GP recruitment shortage we are nevertheless doing everything that we possibly can to respond to the feedback from our patients.
“Moving the Walk-In Clinic to the main Health Centre Building is key to our efforts in keeping waiting times there as short as possible. It means that everything will be under the one roof, which will immediately make everything easier and quicker.
“Crucially, it allows us to be more flexible so that we can adjust staffing levels as necessary. We are at the same time changing the balance of GPs to nurses so that more GPs will be available.
“When the new service starts, it is planned that the Walk-In Clinic will provide a much improved version of the ‘on the day’ appointments that other surgeries run, and I am not aware of any other surgery which offers this. Improving our Walk-In Clinic at the Health Centre building provides early access to GPs, which we believe will be important in helping to reduce waiting times on our booked appointments system.
“We will of course be monitoring the development closely once the move takes place, as we continue to strive to provide Frome with a health care service of which we are proud.”
Whilst the Walk-In Clinic will be moving to new home, Dr Powell is keen to emphasise that the Minor Injuries Unit (MIU) will be remaining at the Community Hospital. The MIU is open between 8.00am to 10.30pm every day of the year.
Dr Powell explained, “The Minor Injuries Unit will be remaining exactly where it is. For anyone who has an injury or needs urgent medical assessment, they will continue to attend at the MIU in the Community Hospital. The respective reception teams at both the MIU and at the Walk-In Clinic will of course be on hand to help ensure the patient attends the venue that best meets their medical need.”
