New provider confirmed for GP services at Ivel Medical Centre in Biggleswade

A new provider of GP services has been confirmed for Ivel Medical Centre in Biggleswade.

Malzeard Road Medical Centre will take over from June 1, providing GP services on a temporary contract set to last up to 24 months.

But the changes mean that the dispensary at the Ivel Medical Centre will be lost on May 31.

The current GP partners at the medical centre resigned their contract to provide GP primary care services earlier this year.

Speaking at the time, GP Jane Hartree, for Ivel Medical Centre, said: “It’s with a heavy heart as a partnership we’ve made the difficult decision that we can no longer provide the services we’d like for our patients and have decided to resign our contract.”

Care at the medical centre had been blasted, with the town’s deputy mayor telling a Central Beds Council meeting: ““Whatever comes after May 31 can’t be any worse than the service we’ve received for the last few months. We’ve had nothing but complaints as councillors, particularly about that surgery.”

Nicky Poulain, Chief Primary Care Officer for Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes ICB, said: “Malzeard Road Medical Centre is an established GP partnership which has experience of delivering healthcare across different sites in Luton.

“Dr Kirti Singh, the centre’s full-time principal GP, brings with her a wealth of knowledge and experience, and she will be supported by nursing and administrative teams, some of which are staff already employed at Ivel Medical Centre.”

During the temporary contract, Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes ICB will work with patients and local residents to design services for a long-term contract.

Letters explaining the changes are being sent to every household with a patient registered at the practice. Patients do not need to do anything: services will transfer over to the new provider on June 1.

Malzeard Road Medical Centre was last reviewed by the Care Quality Commission in May 2019. A report published in June 2019 rated the group good in all areas including whether it was safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led.

The report was reviewed again earlier this month with the CQC stating: “We have not found evidence that we need to reassess the rating at this stage. We will continue to monitor information about this service.”