Department of Health and Social Care Minister Will Quince MP joined North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson for a tour of the new Tadpole Surgery, to see first-hand how it is providing excellent care for patients as part of the Westrop Medical Practice.
Tadpole Surgery opened in May this year, and already has 4,000 patients registered from the Tadpole, Abbey Farm and St Andrews Ridge areas. Along with four other GP surgeries, Tadpole forms part of Westrop Medical Practice, which serves 30,000 people in Highworth, North Swindon, Old Town and Blunsdon.
As a Minister of State in the Department of Health and Social Care, Will is responsible for primary care – which includes GP practices. Having opened Tadpole Surgery, Justin was keen to show Will the impressive new facility and showcase the fantastic work done by Westrop Medical Practice.
During the visit Will met with Business and Finance Manager Richard Rees, Operations Manager Alison Stork, and Managing GP Partner Dr Sarah Bruen. As well as showing Will the new building, the group also discussed the work it was doing to ensure that Westrop Practice was efficient and providing the best possible care for patients.
Will was introduced to one of the practice’s physiotherapists, who between them can offer 112 physiotherapy appointments a week – an innovative service freeing up GP appointments and ensuring timely treatment before an injury worsens and requires more serious treatment. Another key initiative run by Tadpole Surgery is a metabolic clinic, focusing on addressing and preventing health issues such as diabetes and hypertension.
Following the tour, Will joined Richard, Sarah and Justin to discuss issues affecting GP surgeries and what can be done to support them even further. Will set out his key priorities – which included: reducing demand on GP surgeries and supporting preventative healthcare; reducing bureaucracy; relieving pressure on GPs through initiatives such as Community Pharmacies; ensuring a sufficient and varied workforce; and increasing transparency and data.
Sarah and Richard also took the opportunity to highlight some of the issues they experience and feed in suggestions – these included: encouraging looking at and sharing best practice; allowing practices more flexibility with their funding; and making it easier for practices to take on additional surgeries.
Justin Tomlinson MP said: “Westrop Medical Practice has become a very successful and popular practice, and I was delighted to show the Minister the fantastic work done by Sarah, Richard, Alison and the wider team supporting them. I am very proud that Westrop is a brilliant example of best practice, and can really be part of the solution to some of the wider issues affecting GPs.”
Minister Will Quince MP said: “It was great to meet Dr Sarah Bruen and her team for a tour of Tadpole surgery in Swindon which serves a fast-growing community.
Improving access to general practice is a key priority for this government and we can learn a lot from their experience.”
