Concerns raised over Blarney GP service closure

CONCERNS were expressed by patients at a public meeting held in Blarney Community Hall on Saturday about the potential closure of one of the GP services in the locality.

It emerged in recent days that a local GP service, Ashdale Centre, is to lose its only doctor at the end of December.

Arising from the public meeting, a vigil will be held outside the surgery next Friday at 1pm, and a letter is to be sent to the HSE seeking a locum to be sourced in the interim until a permanent GP is appointed.

Sinn Féin TD for Cork North Central, Thomas Gould said: “It was a positive meeting, but there is a lot of concern. There are two issues. You have the patients who are on medical cards, and you have the private patients. Some people have been told they are going to Ballincollig while others have heard about going to Mallow. There is a lot of confusion out there about where they are going to go,” he said.

Deputy Gould said patients are also concerned about getting their prescriptions from the start of next year if there is no replacement doctor. “A lot of people are concerned about getting their prescriptions if they don’t have a replacement doctor in January. There are almost 2,000 patients between medical cards and private. That is a huge number. The communication has been very poor.

 “We have to put the pressure on the HSE and the Government to make sure this doesn’t happen,” said the Cork TD. “We are going to write to the HSE looking for a locum to be put in place until a GP is appointed. The HSE has a legal obligation to find doctors for medical card hol