TAVISTOCK’S out-of-hours GP treatment centre at Tavistock Hospital has now closed following the launch of the new integrated NHS 111 telephone service and out-of-hours GP service across Devon.

The integration of the two services is aimed to provide a more streamlined service, with quicker access to medical help and advice for patients. The new service will be known as the integrated urgent care service.

The launch of the new service on October 1 means there will no longer be local GPs based at Tavistock Hospital during evenings and weekends, meaning people needing the service will have to contact a central call centre in Exeter for advice or travel to Derriford Hospital or Okehampton Hospital for face-to-face appointments.

The old service, provided by Devon Doctors Ltd contracted by NHS Northern Eastern and Western Devon Clinical Commissioning Group (NEW Devon CCG), saw a GP based at Tavistock Hospital every evening and two GPs on weekend mornings and one through the afternoon into the evening.

NEW Devon CCG said that Tavistock saw less than one patient on average per weeknight evening and that there would still be the same clinical support available to patients affected in all these areas, but the doctors would be more mobile to meet demand. 

People who are able to travel to a treatment centre will be offered a booked appointment at their nearest location. The service is designed to make sure that, as far as possible, no one is more than 30 minutes away from a treatment centre.

The new integrated urgent care service, including 111 and out-of-hours service, has been planned following national guidance from NHS England. It will offer shorter waiting times for patients, with the introduction of appointments at NHS out of hours treatment centres for the first time ever and more home visits for patients who are unable to travel to see a GP at weekends and overnight.

There will also be increased clinical support for the NHS 111 service so patients will only be triaged once.

The provider of the new integrated service, Devon Doctors, has an excellent reputation for delivering high quality, safe services and has delivered urgent out of hours medical care across the county for more than 20 years.

In order to make sure patients and the public have all the information they need about the new service, NEW Devon CCG has created dedicated pages on its website packed with information about the new service and answers to frequently asked questions.