20 March (Part 2) - Bexley has above average GP numbers - if you exclude Thamesmead
There is a new Director of Adults’ Services at Bexley Council replacing
Stuart Rowbotham. Stuart always seemed to have his finger on the pulse so it is
to be hoped that replacement is just as good. She is Yolanda Dennehy the former Deputy.
The Adults’ Scrutiny Committee meeting is not usually the most scintillating and as with the last one
just a few highlights may be worth reporting. A recruitment issue for Social
Worker trainers probably has a severe impact on future services but it is not really an attention grabber. What else?
• The Home Office has withdrawn the licences from some care providers which means
they can no longer recruit from overseas. The new Director said that overseas
recruiting had mainly worked well “but a couple had not been compliant with
their paperwork and this is easy to rectify”. A few were a bit more serious and
being investigated. Residents are not at risk. Only four companies in total had come to notice.
• The North of the borough has 38 doctors (GPs) per 100,000 population while
elsewhere in the borough the figures vary between 54 and 67 GPs. The England average is 44.
• The outcomes in the North (Lakeside} “are often not as good as elsewhere”.
• Nursing staff numbers are lower at 20 to 25 per 100,000 and again North Bexley is least well served.
• Getting a GP appointment is “a challenge” everywhere but the quality of care is “OK if you can get it”.
• “There is only one doctor in Crayford, but we keep approving more flats.”
• 80% of appointments in Bexley are face to face.
• Bexley has 43 Community Pharmacies but it is too early to know what impact they may have on GP services.
And that’s about it. Was it worth the two hours of listening? Probably not but someone needs to keep tabs on how things are managed.