THE Scottish Government has announced that GP practices will receive more than £9 million of funding to upgrade their premises and IT services.
The investment will look to make the best use of existing space in GP practices and also support the use of the online virtual clinic service, Attend Anywhere, by increased internet speeds in the practices.
Health secretary Jeane Freeman said, “This is a substantial investment by the Scottish Government which will support GPs, the wider primary care workforce and the communities they serve.
“The upgrades to premises and IT systems will see continued improvements to the delivery of high quality patient care, including the continued deployment of Attend Anywhere in our remote and rural areas.
“This investment is part of a wider commitment to increase general practice funding by £250 million by 2021 as part of an extra investment of £500 million per year for primary care funding. This funding together with our wider reform programme will mean additional staff working in primary care, providing better services for patients and allowing them to see the right person at the right time.”
Scottish GP committee deputy chair Patricia Moultrie added, “This is welcome funding for GP premises and will allow partners to improve their practices and give much-need updates to IT systems. This funding is definitely a step in the right direction in regards to making premises fit for the multidisciplinary teams working within general practice in the future, as we look towards the development of Phase 2 of the GP contract.”
