A GP practice in East Riding of Yorkshire CCG is piloting a series of walk-in clinics for people to get suspicious moles checked out.
Dr Simon Carruthers, a GPSI in dermatology at the Old Fire Station practice in Beverley said the clinics should help people to get seen quicker than being referred by their GP.
Dr Carruthers said: ‘This is a great initiative aimed at helping to reduce the number of patients who currently have to wait approximately two weeks for referral.
‘You may just need reassurance, helpful advice or perhaps your GP is simply not sure. If that’s the case then this is the perfect place for you to come along and have your mind put at ease.’
Dr Carruthers will be running the clinics one evening a month for the next six months, starting next Wednesday.
He added: ‘Any patient in the East Riding of Yorkshire can come along and be seen during the clinic opening hours. The service provides easier access to seeing a GPSI rather than waiting for an appointment – only be told in some cases there is nothing wrong.’
The initiative comes as the Primary Care Dermatology Society has called on NICE guidelines to put more emphasis on training and diagnosis of melanoma in primary care, to help cut down on unnecessary referrals through the urgent, two-week pathway and speed referrals for those that need to be seen.
