THE number of GP out-of-hours patients in Inverclyde receiving phone or video consultations rather than face-to-face appointments has increased since changes to the service were introduced.

More than 100 more patients had remote consultations after Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health board's decision to permanently reduce face-to-face access to out-of-hours services within Inverclyde.

The figures were revealed after Inverclyde MSP Stuart McMillan submitted a freedom of information request to health chiefs.

We previously reported there was a huge public outcry following the decision to leave Inverclyde as the only GP out of hours centre not open seven days a week and overnight.

The data also shows that the number of patients accessing GPs face-to-face at the centre in the IRH, when it is open, has doubled.

MSP Mr McMillan, who has promised to monitor the GP out of hours service, says he hopes the data will reassure consituents that there is a full service available to them.

He said: "I submitted this FOI request because I wanted to understand how many people from Inverclyde had used the GPOOH service since the changes were introduced.

"This followed concerns that the changes would have a detrimental impact on local access.

“These figures show that the service is being used by local people who’re benefiting from in-person appointments, with patient transport provided, and video and telephone consultations where this is more appropriate.

“The fact that almost half of the calls to NHS24 saw patients assessed and provided with advice on how to manage their condition from the comfort of their home is a welcome improvement to the GPOOH service.

“It also shows that the majority of people calling NHS24 don’t need to leave Inverclyde.

"While I agree that having to attend an in-person appointment outside of Inverclyde isn’t ideal, the number of in-person appointments that require a patient to travel outside remains consistent with the figure that led to this decision, around four overnight each night."

The figures released show that in April this year 174 patients travelled outwith Inverclyde to see a GP out of hours and in May that fell to 131.

During the same period the numbers from Inverclyde getting remote consultations increased from 293 in April to 397 in May.

Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board agreed to Stuart McMillan's calls to open the Inverclyde centre for limited hours on a Sunday, instead of just a Saturday and bank holidays.

As a result the number of patients using a face-to-face GP out-of-hours appointment almost doubled from 71 to 139 when they were available locally. 

Mr McMillan said: “The extension of the IRH centre’s opening hours to include Sundays is warmly welcome and is providing more local in-person GPOOH appointments."

As part of his freedom of information request, Mr McMillan asked for a breakdown of the service in April this year, before the changes were introduced, and then in May once the decision was taken by the healthboard.

A total of 1,442 patients from Inverclyde had to use the GP out of hours service in April and May

In all, almost one in 10 patients received a home visit (142 in total) and almost half (690 in total) were given a telephone or video consultation.

This means that 1 in 5 patients had to travel to a site outside Inverclyde, with 210 in total using Inverclyde when it is open.

Mr McMillan said: “In addition to this information, I have not been contacted by a single constituent to say that they’ve had issues with the GPOOH service since these changes were introduced.

“Regardless, I will be submitting further FOI requests to see if the demand changes in any way. I’d also encourage constituents who have accessed the GPOOH service to let me know what their experience was, whether that be positive or negative, to help inform my understanding of how the service is operating.

“Ultimately, I hope this data will reassure my constituents that the GPOOH service is open to them and will provide you with the advice and treatment that is appropriate to you. Please don’t hesitate to phone 111 if you think you need to see a GP.”