New staff and facilities to help relieve pressure on GP practices in Leighton Buzzard

New staff and facilities have been made available at Leighton Buzzard Health Centre to support the work of the town’s three GP practices.

Additional accommodation has been secured by Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes Integrated Care Board (ICB) to help improve primary care services with national funding used to recruit extra staff.

Work has been completed to freshen up and install electrical and data services to a suite of rooms located at the Health Centre in Bassett Road to support the new services offered by the Network. These will exist alongside the midwifery and community health services already operating from the building.

The Leighton Linslade Health Connections PCN staff have moved in and are now working from the health centre, supporting the three GP practices as well as driving new initiatives to support the local community. New staff members include care co-ordinators, health and wellbeing coaches, clinical pharmacists, paramedics and physiotherapists.

Nicky Poulain, the ICB’s Chief Primary Care Officer, said: “These new staff will play an important role in supporting the wider health and wellbeing of people living in and around Leighton-Linslade, as well as relieving pressure on the core services delivered by the three GP practices in the town.”

Paul Quinton, spokesman for Leighton Linslade Health Connections, said: “The new facilities have provided a real focus now for the PCN services to develop further. We have the space to see patients in a non-clinical environment which can feel more comfortable for patients to discuss and explore the help they seek.

"Following our first group event for patients with type 2 diabetes with a guest speaker to support managing their diabetes, we plan to hold regular educational and support groups, such as a smoking cessation training and support group. Additionally, our clinical rooms can support our practices in providing additional services such as learning disability health checks and preventative services such as cardiovascular disease checks, medication reviews and face to face coaching to support patients’ wider needs that impact their health, for example helping with access to housing.”

South West Beds MP Andrew Selous, said: “It is excellent to see these new health facilities in our rapidly growing town. Getting the right primary care offer which works for patients and staff is a key priority for me. I am pleased to hear of the ongoing efforts of the PCN to attract and retain more GPs to complement the great new primary care team and also the work it is doing to provide sufficient same-day urgent care in Leighton Buzzard.”