Closure of village GP surgery to be decided

A run-down building, struggling NHS finances and staff isolation were among the reasons to close a GP surgery in a village, a report said.

Boxford Mill Surgery on Church Street, Boxford, was unviable and required significant investment to make it fit for purpose, said Suffolk County Council.

The surgery runs four morning sessions every week with a single GP and approving its closure would mean moving the sessions, alongside the blood clinic and dispensing service, to the group's Hadleigh surgery about five miles (8km) away.

The proposal will be discussed at a meeting on Wednesday.

The council's report stated the surgery - part of the Hadleigh Boxford Practice Group - was unviable, with its building being run down, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

It stated: "The Hadleigh Boxford Practice Group considers the existing Boxford branch building is no longer fit for purpose and does not meet the standards of a modern GP practice.

"This decision is reinforced by the current challenging financial climate and the increasing costs needed from a reduced NHS budget, to finance two practices."

According to the report, clinical staff reported feeling increasingly vulnerable while working in isolation - and on one occasion a clinician had to rush to the Boxford surgery, leaving a full clinic in Hadleigh, to support a GP who was administering oxygen while waiting for an ambulance.

The closure of the village branch would affect 1,488 residents in Boxford and up to 16,156 when including Hadleigh and the surrounding villages.

Residents had raised concerns about bus access to Hadleigh, but the medical group said many were already using services there and it was working to improve transport links to the town.

Following Wednesday's discussion, the practice will submit its closure application to the Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board (SNEE ICB) for a final decision.

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