Liberal Democrat Councillor Louie Hamblett has received assurances following another meeting with the practice and the CCG that their telephone system has been to blame for intermittent faults and lengthy waiting times.

The practice has now sought external assistance from Oldham CCG to help change their telephony system and their provider also along with a seconded member of the CCG staff to help ensure that both patient and staff relations are no longer further strained.

Councillor Hamblett was also recently surprised to learn that the practice has absorbed additional patients from another practice that has recently been dissolved.

With the unexpected closure of Donald Wilde Medical Practice resulted in around 5000 patients having to be relocated, and this affected those practices in Oldham who absorbed these patients to their practice lists.

This has now brought three practices into one now super practice and having a limited number of GPs to deal with thousands of patients.

As the largest GP practice in Oldham with a patient list that comprises around a tenth of the town’s population, these have been acute issues for Royton & Crompton Family Practice, and they should have a responsibility to each and every one of their patients.

He is also concerned for the strain on such service would be and how other neighbouring practices that have effectively been left by the wayside to struggle in older facilities whilst such a monster of facility has engulfed its competitors to become a small hospital.

This is all yet more evidence that health facilities need improving and expanding in Shaw and Crompton.

Councillor Hamblett has another meeting in a month to monitor any progress and improvement.

“Patients should always come before profits and I think our Primary GP’s need to be reminded of this, we should have modern facilities, dispensing modern medicine for the 21st century” Councillor Hamblett added.