A practice that has apparently been rated outstanding by the CQC has ended its contract as it “will lose a third of its current funding” over the next two years.
Sutherland Lodge Surgery, in Chelmsford, has served NHS England six months’ notice on its contract to provide medical services. The contract will come to an end on 30 June 2016.
In a joint statement, the four partners of the surgery explained: “This loss would mean a severe cut in the services we have worked so hard over the years to develop. We feel very strongly that after the inevitable rise in the doctor to patient ratio, which will move from 1:1890 to 1:4000, we will not be able to continue to provide the current level of services nor be comfortable in providing the significantly reduced level of service that the new contract would require.
“It is sad and ironic that we recently received an outstanding rating by the Government’s quality assessor – the CQC [Care Quality Commission] – and we were well regarded by NHS England,” they added.
NHS England recently carried out a national review of all practices on a PMS (Personal Medical Services) contract to make sure funding of primary care services was deemed to be fair for all practices.
For Sutherland Lodge “the review’s outcome means a significant reduction in funding, which will be taken away over two years and given to Mid Essex Clinical Commissioning Group to reinvest in mid Essex primary care,” the partners added.
The partners and practice team are now working with NHS England and proposed new contract holders to ensure that there is a smooth transition and that the majority of the practice team will be given the offer of continued employment.
