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GPs to get £25m investment to see thousands more patients by 2021

GPs to get £25m investment to see thousands more patients by 2021
21 November 2016



GPs will see an extra 25,000 patients every year in the Black Country and West Birmingham by 2021, according to the area’s sustainability and transformation plan (STP).

The plan promises a £25m investment in primary care services by 2021, which will enable GPs to schedule 25,000 more appointments.

Released today, the STP also guarantees same-day appointments for children under 5 and adults over 75, meaning 200,000 people will be able to see a family doctor when they need to.

GPs will see an extra 25,000 patients every year in the Black Country and West Birmingham by 2021, according to the area’s sustainability and transformation plan (STP).

The plan promises a £25m investment in primary care services by 2021, which will enable GPs to schedule 25,000 more appointments.

Released today, the STP also guarantees same-day appointments for children under 5 and adults over 75, meaning 200,000 people will be able to see a family doctor when they need to.

Andy Williams, Black Country STP lead, says: “In the Black Country and West Birmingham we have a diverse and changing population and demand for health and care services is growing and evolving.

“We need to work together to meet these challenges within a tight financial envelope. The Sustainability and Transformation Plan enables us to do this in a way we could not do as individual organisations.

“Today we are publishing our plans and highlighting the ways that they will benefit local people. This is the start of a conversation about these plans with partner organisations and our population. We will be engaging with local people in more detail as our proposals develop.

“By tackling waste, improving standards and working together, we can avoid a potential increase in health costs of over £413 million per year by 2021. This will give better value to the taxpayer, equivalent to £680 a year for every household in the Black Country and West Birmingham.”

From November 2016, by ringing one telephone number, the 1.4m people who live in the Black Country and West Birmingham will be able to book a doctor’s appointment, in the evening and at the weekend, get dental advice, order a repeat prescription, or get urgent health advice.

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