Sainsbury’s stores in the UK may see the opening of more GP surgeries, the supermarket has revealed.
It says it has been approached by doctors who are keen to open practices, following the success of a surgery which opened in a Manchester store.
A company spokesman said: “Sainsbury’s has around 200 stores that have the potential space and appropriate facilities to support a GP’s surgery, in conjunction with a pharmacy already open on site.”
He added that Sainsbury’s had not contacted any primary care trusts or GPs about introducing surgeries to its outlets, but confirmed family doctors had approached the supermarket looking to open practices.
The spokesman added: “The scheme at Heaton Park has been a real success with over 1,500 consultations provided to patients since March 2008.
“Demand for appointments has been so strong that the service has been increased from three to four days a week.”
Meanwhile, Asda said it was considering in-house GP practices working with the right PCTs “in the right areas”.
Local PCTs currently run blood test drop-in clinics in Asda stores in York and Birmingham.
Copyright © Press Association 2009
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