NHS Lanarkshire must act immediately to improve Woodstock

Since her election in 2021, Ms McAllan has been raising her constituents’ concerns about the level of care provided at Woodstock Medical Centre with health chiefs at NHS Lanarkshire.

As well as bringing the problems to the Board’s attention, she has been calling for them to visit Lanark and see for themselves the problems at play.

This work resulted, in December 2022, in the Health Board agreeing with McAllan that they would engage with Woodstock more closely and visit on a quarterly basis.

Now, Ms McAllan says, that as a result of that process, the Health Board are aware that Lanark patients are being underserved and importantly, that Alba Medical Group (who run Woodstock) could be in breach of their legal contract with the Board to provide a ‘reasonable level of care’.

If the managing GPs are in breach of their contract, Ms McAllan says the legal onus is with the Health Board to ensure that a ‘reasonable level of care’ is restored to her constituents in Lanark – and she is calling on them to act urgently to ensure this.

She said: “Alba Medical Group are contracted by NHS Lanarkshire to provide GP services in Lanark. That contract provides that Alba must deliver a ‘reasonable level of care’.

“For two years, since being elected, I have been campaigning to make clear to the Board that this is simply not the experience of my constituents. I am grateful to NHS Lanarkshire for agreeing to my call to come to Lanark and see the problems for themselves.

"They must now know, on the basis of statistical evidence, that Alba Medical Group owners could be in breach of their contractual duties in Lanark and, importantly, that my constituents are being failed.

“The obligation is now the Board’s to act – with immediate effect - to ensure that a ‘reasonable level of care’ is reinstated. At the very least, I am calling for an immediate improvement plan to be devised, which begins by addressing patient access. We need to see this developed urgently.”