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Hospital trust takes over ninth GP practice

A 5,000-patient GP practice has become the latest to be taken over by the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust.

This is the ninth practice to come under the running of the hospital, which now has 70,000 GP patients and employs 43 GPs.

This includes the three GP partners of the Coalway Road Surgery, who have become salaried to the hospital as part of the takeover.

The trust began offering GP services with the takeover of eight GP practices last year as part of an ‘open-ended’ pilot.

At the time, local GP leaders said GP partners were motivated by financial ‘non-viability’ and workforce shortages, with the move viewed as ‘handing over the problem to someone else’.

But Coalway Road Surgery, which is currently rated as ‘requires improvement’ by the CQC, said the move would improve patient care.

Interim practice manager Theresa Philips said: ‘The practice feels that joining Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust will allow them to develop working relationships with the hospital and other GP practices to ensure the patients receive the appropriate care and attention.

‘We as a practice feel this is the way forward in care where both secondary and primary care work together as one.’

David Loughton, chief executive of the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, said: ‘I am delighted that the team from Coalway Road Surgery have decided to work more closely with us and welcome them to the trust.’