Over 600 consultations at Fife's first walk-in GP clinic since launch last month

More than 600 consultations have taken place at Fife’s first walk-in clinic since its launch in Buckhaven at the end of August.

The facility has seen an average attendance of 44 patients every day with the average time from arrival to discharge being 56 minutes while the wait to see a clinician is an average of 33 minutes.

From these, 449 patients (72.4 per cent) were seen and treated, 92 patients were redirected to the Right Care in the Right Place and 20 patients (3.2%) required ED/999 escalation.

There were 12 patients who required admission.

The facility, which is in Buckhaven’s Randolph Wemyss Memorial Hospital, opened as part of the Scottish Government’s national GP Walk-In pilot project.

The urgent care walk-in service provides eligible patients who have an urgent non-emergency health concern and cannot attend their usual GP practice access to same-day, face-to-face assessment and treatment without an appointment.

The clinic is currently only available to patients registered with a GP in Leven, Methil, Buckhaven and Kennoway.

However, it is hoped that later this year, the service will then be expanded to all Fife residents who are registered with a GP.

Members of the NHS Fife health board were given an update on the scheme at their meeting on Tuesday.

Lynne Garvey, director of Fife’s Health and Social Care Partnership, was pleased with the way the initiative has gone so far.

“It is really important the board recognises that the comprehensive programme of work of the primary care and urgent care workforces, finance, estates, digital and community has been absolutely fundamental to what I think is a very successful walk-in in Fife,” she said.

“The most we have seen in one day is 97 patients and we have seen data since the launch that 620 have attended.

“56 minutes was the average arrival to discharge time so that was amazing. That is being triaged and seen by the right person in the right place and that is a huge success story for Fife.

“Only three per cent required redirection to our emergency department and two per cent required hospital admission.”

The clinic is currently only available to patients registered with a GP in Leven, Methil, Buckhaven and Kennoway.

However, it is hoped later that later this year, the service will then be expanded to all Fife residents who are registered with a GP.

NHS Fife Medical Director, Professor Chris McKenna, said the scheme had been a “real success story”.

He added “People want to know how we have done this, how we have made it a success and I think we have done it well.

“We have done it safely, we have done it in the right place because we know in that locality there was a need and it is going some way in helping support that community.

“I am really proud of what we have been able to achieve.”