The Medic Care Surgery in London Road (previously called the Teynham Surgery), will move to Sittingbourne Memorial Hospital this summer, when its current building is no longer available.
NHS Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group, which is responsible for making sure patients have access to healthcare, has supported GP Dr Lavan Nilan Sasikethan’s practice to find the new site after the owner of the building, Dr Sasikethan’s GP partner, retired meaning it was no longer available to be used.
A general practice building needs a certain amount of space to be able to provide high-quality care, including reception, administrative and clinical consulting rooms. We have not been able to identify suitable accommodation of this type available in Teynham.
All patients have been written to and there will be a patient meeting in June – there is nothing for them to do; all will remain registered with Medic Care Surgery. There aren’t any changes to practice boundaries.
Director of Primary Care, Sukh Singh said: “We understand that this move will be unsettling for some patients and would like to assure you that it is not a decision taken by either the clinical commissioning group or Dr Sasikethan. We have tried to find a way for the practice to stay in its current location but this has not been possible.
“We will continue to work on a longer-term plan for this practice, taking into account local health needs and other planning and development in the area.
“We are really keen for people to share their views, so we can better understand what is important to patients and to help shape future services, so will be asking patients registered with the practice to complete a survey and share their views at a public meeting.’’
In the meantime, the new location allows an enhanced range of services to be delivered. There will be room for three clinicians on site; improving access and waiting times. As the practice will be in the same building as Sittingbourne Memorial Hospital, patients will have convenient access to other tests, if required.
The move will take place in July/August. Patients will be contacted about the exact date in the near future. Please continue to contact the practice and book appointments as normal.