PLANS for Westbury’s new Primary Care Development in Leigh Park are moving ahead.
Last year it was announced that a new centre for primary care would be located in Mane Way, Leigh Park, combining the Eastleigh Surgery, White Horse Surgery, and a range of other healthcare services under one roof. Planning permission was granted in November.
Debbie Riddiford, practice manager at Eastleigh Surgery now reports, “The first phase of procurement is complete and the land purchase has been secured. We are now working with the prospective tenants to confirm the agreements for the services to be provided at the development, and we hope to appoint the contractor and confirm a start on-site date within the next few weeks.”
The Primary Care Development will accommodate all the services that are currently provided from Eastleigh and White Horse Surgery, and in addition to this there will be a number of new services available that Westbury people currently have to travel to other towns to access. The services available will be:
• 8 GPs from the existing surgeries (so people will continue to see their family doctor), plus a GP in training.
• Nurse practitioners, who are able to see, treat and prescribe for patients.
• Nurses, providing a wide range of services from family planning to asthma care.
• Consultant outpatient clinics.
• A minor surgery suite, which will be used by staff and visiting secondary care consultants.
• The Westbury and Warminster Neighbourhood Teams (who provide community healthcare to patients in their own homes).
• A mobile diagnostics centre, for screening services and diagnostic tests. Community midwives, providing antenatal and postnatal care.
• Health visitors
• Outpatient X-ray facilities for patients under the care of specialists at Salisbury District Hospital.
• A stand-by point for the ambulance service.
• A dental surgery, which will extend to three dentists on site, providing NHS and private dental services.
• Primary care counselling services and lifestyle management services, including diet, exercise advice and smoking cessation support.
• The practice is in negotiation with a pharmacy provider.
The building will be approximately 2,635 square metres in floor area, compared to the existing Eastleigh Surgery which is about 740 square metres and the White Horse Surgery that occupies about 90 square metres.
It is hoped that the Primary Care Development will open in 2012. All existing services will remain where they are until the new development opens.
