First Minister reveals second Fife town set to get GP walk-in clinic

The announcement was made by First Minister John Swinney on a visit to the first facility which opened its doors at Randolph Wemyss Memorial Hospital, Buckhaven, this month.

He confirmed that Glenrothes is on the list of locations for the clinics which are designed to help patients who have an urgent, non-emergency health concern that requires same-day attention and cannot attend their usual GP practice.

Mr Swinney announced the additions which will bring the number of walk-in centres opened during the pilot scheme to 40.

A location for the Glenrothes clinic has yet to be announced, and no date for it opening has been confirmed - it is one of the locations “in development.”

Speaking at Randolph Wemyss Community Hospital, the First Minister said:  I promised that my government would break from the status quo and introduce a new way for patients to access same day care – and we are delivering on that commitment. We are listening and want to create more choice for patients, closer to home and without the need for a pre-booked appointment.

“In the first six months since we opened the first service in February, more than 10,500 walk-in cases have been seen. As these services are phased in to become fully operational, seven days a week, I am confident that many more people will benefit.” He hailed the opening of the Buckhaven walk-in clinic as “an important milestone” in the roll-out of this pilot project.

“This is part of my Government’s wider agenda to provide patients with greater choice and access to care closer to home – in turn relieving pressure on hospitals and acute services. It will complement our trusted network of GP practices across the country, which we are bolstering with historic additional investment to recruit more GPs with £531 million to 2029.”

The Buckhaven clinic only operates Monday to Friday and is only accessible by patients in Leven, Methil, Buckhaven and Kennoway. From September/October, NHS Fife plans to expand the service to residents residents registered with a GP across the region.

Mr Swinney’s visit came as the Royal College of General Practitioners in Scotland, said the scheme had delivered little benefit.

Dr Chris Provan, chair, said: "GP walk-in centres have already been extensively trialled in England and simply failed to deliver the results promised to patients who deserve high-quality care in their community. They did not reduce pressure on GP practices or A&E departments, and there is no reason to suggest the Scottish pilot will be any different.

"It is difficult to understand why the Scottish Government is committing substantial sums of public money to duplicating services that already exist when there are more effective ways of improving patient access. The pilot was originally presented as a one-year pilot, yet it has now been extended until April 2029 without clear justification. The evaluation of the initial centres has not even started.”

The organisation said data from the first nine walk-in centres shows they delivered an average of 120 appointments a day in July. By comparison, GP practices across Scotland provide around 136,000 patient contacts on a typical weekday.

Dr Provan added: “We welcome the additional investment the Scottish Government is making in core general practice. However, it is disappointing that so much time, attention and funding continues to be devoted to GP walk-in centres rather than measures that would make a meaningful difference to patient access. Investment in modern IT and digital infrastructure, improved telephone and appointment booking systems, continuity of care, a long-term workforce plan for general practice, and targeted support for patients in deprived communities would be more beneficial.”