Surgery's move sparks criticism

The criticism came at a special meeting of Leicester City Council’s health and wellbeing scrutiny commission.
It was called after 631 people signed a petition in protest over the move of the Highfields Medical Centre from Melbourne Road to the Merlyn Vaz Health and Social Care Centre.
A branch surgery in Moira Street was also moved to the Belgrave Health Centre.
Patients were furious at being given a little over two weeks’ notice about the move.
Members of the scrutiny commission heard evidence from NHS England, which is responsible for making sure people have access to GP services, members of the surgery’s patient participation group, the patient watchdog Healthwatch and surgery representatives.
Trouble began at the end of September when 8,000 patients were told of the surgery move taking place on October 10.
Karen Chouhan, chairman of Healthwatch Leicester, said: “Our main concern is the way in which people and patients have been treated. I find it amazing that professionals from a caring profession haven’t exercised the same amount of care for patients. I am very concerned about the equality implications which don’t seem to have been considered. The process would have been a whole lot smoother if the patient participation group had been brought in earlier.”