We are proud to communicate the launch from 1st September of the SGPA Extended Access Service which will be delivering the NHS England Specification for Extended Access.
The extended hours in primary care support Sunderland CCG’s vision of Better Health for Sunderland and is in line with the delivery of its strategic objectives to transform out of hospital care and sustainability in the population. The service will deliver additional week day evening 6pm – 8.30pm, weekend 9am – 5.30pm and Bank Holiday 10am – 2pm appointments from 5 locality Extended Access Hubs in Sunderland. As this is an integrated citywide service every hub may not be open 7 days a week, the service will offer patients pre-bookable and on the day appointments to any available hub to any patient from within Sunderland who is referred by their home practice or from 111.
The Extended Access service is for both planned and unplanned routine primary care. It is not intended for urgent or emergency care and offers no ‘walk in’ or on call service. Patients should be advised to attend at the time specified by their appointment, they should not be advised to attend earlier with the intention of being seen sooner. Should patients need to be seen sooner, or their care deemed urgent, they should be sign-posted to appropriate services or seen by the home GP practice. If practices wish to cancel a patients please contact Sunderland GP Alliance Head Office on 0191 5166076.
The service will maintain data protection and confidentiality standards in relation to patients they care for who are referred to a hub site and use the extended access service. The patient will have consented to referral to the service and to the access of their patient data. If a patient is deemed clinically unsuitable for the service they will be returned to their home practice with a clinical rationale for this decision as it is the responsibility of the home practice to book suitable patients into the service, please refer to the appointment criteria attached.
SGPA working with local Clinicians and Managers are able to deliver this service through your practice engagement and adherence to the terms of the Service.