A FISHPOOL grandmother has welcomed a new initiative to open some GP surgeries at weekends and on public holidays after the service helped alleviate her heart problems.

Maureen Gibson, who is living with angina and vascular dementia, attended Dr Sanjay Kotegankar’s surgery at the Moorgate Primary Care Centre over the Easter weekend.

The 75 year-old was given increased medication to manage her symptoms, and has endorsed the new system whereby appointments can be made when residents’ normal GP surgeries may not be open.

Maureen’s daughter-in-law, Claudia Mathews, said: “Maureen had experienced pounding in her ears and was a little short of breath and so we rang her surgery on the Friday evening.

"We expected to hear that she might have to wait until Tuesday or have to visit a walk-in centre or accident and emergency (A&E) and were surprised to learn she could have a Saturday appointment.

"As many families living with dementia know, assurance and stability are important things; and we were pleasantly surprised when we found out the surgery was open and impressed by the first-class treatment Maureen received.”

Government funding secured by Bury GP Federation has given local patients more choice, flexibility and convenient access to appointments with a GP.

Longer GP opening hours are part of a package of improvements Bury GP Federation is implementing after securing £2.7 million from the Prime Minister’s Challenge Fund.

Greater online access so that patients can order repeat prescriptions and book appointments online plus the opportunity to consult with your GP by telephone rather than face-to-face are all part of the drive.

Dr Peter Thomas, organisational medical director for Bury GP Federation and a practising GP at Radcliffe Primary Care Centre, said: “Maureen is exactly the type of patient this initiative was set up to support. Her family rightly gauged that she needed treatment and more importantly reassurance, without needing to use hospital services.

"Although she was not a patient at his practice, Dr Sanjay was able to look at her medical records and adjust her medication appropriately.”

The majority of Bury’s 33 GP practices are working together to staff the service on a rotating schedule, with clinicians able to access patients’ medical records wherever they choose an appointment.

Dr Kiran Patel, Clinical Lead for NHS Bury Clinical Commissioning Group, added: “The increased availability of weekend and holiday GP appointments at some Bury surgeries has already had a positive impact on hundreds of patients like Maureen."