After spending time on the Isle of Skye recently, few people in Eden can really say they have deserved a holiday more than Alston GP Claire Corlett.
This is because she has been the only full-time doctor at Alston Medical Practice, looking after almost 2,000 people since December 2021.
Even before that, she was the only partnered GP at the practice since long-serving doctor Michael Hanley retired last August.
That all changed last month when Cumbria Health On Call (CHOC) took over management of the remote Pennine practice, in the hope of providing a sustainable future for the 90-plus year-old organisation.
“It’s great that we’ve finally got something great to shout about on the Moor,” said Claire. “It’s been going really well so far and the response from people has been really good. We realise change for anyone is scary, but the patients shouldn’t see any major changes when they come into the surgery.
“It’s been a very uncertain manic time since Dr Hanley retired and we didn’t know what to do. We actually contacted CHOC and the whole process has just been so positive.”
Recent cutbacks to services have hit the Moor community hard. From losing an X-ray service, day unit, and on-site district nursing team, some residents have felt let down in recent years. This is, in part, why Claire is so keen to shout about CHOC’s management takeover.
She said that with a high population of elderly surgery users that do not drive, and with woeful public transport, CHOC’s involvement is a real win.
She said that while the practice was rated outstanding in its most recent CQC report and the team has been able to maintain appointments throughout the pandemic, CHOC’s support would help the team provide a service “even better than it already is”. AlsoThis is due to the mix of skills afforded to the now-bolstered team which includes a pharmacist, advanced nurse practitioners and a salaried GP.
With this said, the core team will stay the same. Claire will remain the surgery’s clinical lead GP, meaning she’ll still be responsible for the overall implementation of medical care, and Tania Rymer will continue in her role as practice manager, overseeing the day-to-day running of Alston Medical Practice.
Claire added that with CHOC now managing the big picture side of things, both her and Tania would have more time to focus on patients and making improvements.
This is already manifesting itself with the return of Alston’s cancer support group.
The Alston practice approached CHOC following their successes in running another rural Cumbrian surgery, the Glenridding Health Centre.
Taken on in 2015, CHOC has also recently brought Windermere and Bowness Practice at Goodly Dale under its management. Claire said they had been impressed by this high quality of care CHOC provided in remote settings.
With patients constantly asking Claire what she thinks of the takeover she was keen to reinforce that the support of CHOC was a massive boost to the community and means she can better support the people of Alston.
“I love it,” said Claire when asked about working at the heart of the Moor community. “The continuity of care you can provide means you’re really able to be make a difference to individual patients’ lives and keep up to date with them throughout the process.”
