Joint GP hub scheme delayed due to lack of funding

As reported by the BBC, joint GP spaces could help alleviate the struggles of hospitals by offering help to patients

The Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board have called to attention the rise in costs since 2020 when the Bicester scheme was launched. This indicates that the previously allocated funds for the project are now insufficient.

The GP surgeries have expressed the urgency for more space to handle the increase in population around those areas.

The GP hub which was to be built on the outskirts of Bicester was meant to merge two of Alchester Medical Group’s surgeries as well as the Montgomery-House practice. The constructions have however been delayed due to the price of construction and the Ukrainian war.

Health commentator and ex NHS trust boss, Roy Riley, has advocated for the notion of joint GP hubs as they could slow the heavy stream of patients in hospitals by offering alternative care.

Riley has also expressed his doubt in the government’s scheme to build 40 new hospitals by 2030 due to rising costs.