For some time calls have been made to make going to the doctor cheaper in Jersey, with Islanders paying an average of between £36-42 for an appointment.
- Co-operative Medical Care was launched with the focus on helping islanders pay less for high quality healthcare, particularly families with young children.
- When Co-operative Medical Care was formed, the society looked after just over 5000 patients with the extra 641 patients, the practice has grown by 13%.
- The Co-Ops three surgeries are located in David Place St Helier, Rue de L’Eglise St Peter and New Era Health Centre St Clement.
Last November, the Channel Islands Co-operative Society announced that to make medical care more accessible for families, it would be offering £30 standard consultations, free health care for under-fives and half-price visits for those aged between five and 18.
Since then, 641 new patients have registered across the society’s three practices, and the increase in demand has prompted the Co-op to hire two new doctors. Dr Lisa Clynes and Dr Brendan Loane have now joined the society’s four existing GPs, one practice nurse and 11 support staff.
Phil Romeril, head of health care at the Channel Islands Co-operative Society, said that he was pleased that Islanders had responded so positively to the launch of the service.
‘From research conducted by the Jersey Consumer Council, we could see that there was a need for an affordable approach to health care in Jersey. Co-operative Medical Care is meeting this need,’ he said. ‘It was always our intention to increase Co-operative Medical Care if the demand was there, and we are delighted to welcome Dr Clynes and Dr Loane to the practice.
‘The extra capacity will enable us to offer more appointments at short notice and across our busy times.’
The Co-op was the third practice in the Island to offer free medical care to children under the age of five, following a decision made by the Atlantic Surgery in August and the Lido Medical Practice in October.
- Standard consultation: £30
- Under-five consultation: free
- 5-18 consultation: £15
- Blood test: £10
- Cervical smear: £10
- Pregnancy test: £10
- ECG: £30
- Hearing test: £30
- Flu vaccination adult: £10
- Flu vaccination child: free
Last week Island Medical Centre announced that they were going to offer free appointments to under-16s.
Mark Cox, the Co-operative’s Society’s chief operating officer, said that he was encouraged that other practices had started to reconsider their charging policies.
‘We have always believed that high-quality care could be provided at a more affordable price, which is why we launched Co-operative Medical Care,’ he said. ‘If other practices are now following suit, that is good news for patients and their families.
‘Co-operative Medical Care has exciting plans for the future, including the refurbishment of our surgery buildings and further investment in the range of services we offer our patients.’
Dr Lisa Clynes
THE former Jersey College for Girls student joined Co-operative Medical Care in January.
Dr Clynes graduated from the University of Nottingham in 2003 and has over ten years’ experience in medicine, becoming a fully qualified GP in 2008.
She worked in various NHS hospitals in England before returning to Jersey in 2010 and specialises in family medicine, women’s health, menopause and family planning.
Dr Brendan Loane
DR Loane has been practicing as a GP in Jersey for over 12 years, most recently at a surgery in St Helier.
Before moving to the Island with his family in early 2002, Dr Loane was the GP Principle at a practice in Ballynahinch, Northern Ireland.
He qualified from Queen’s University Belfast and has over 20 years’ experience in general medicine, specialising in family medicine, dermatology, paediatrics and occupational medicine.
Advocate Rose Colley, Jersey Consumer Council Chairman’s response to the launch of Co-operative Medical Care
‘The Consumer Council welcome the new Co-operative ‘medical’ initiative – we are delighted that feedback from our Primary Health Care Survey and Focus Groups have been pivotal in much of the Co-operative’s decision making. Naturally we hope that the patients enjoy and benefit from the reduced GP consultation prices and that the parents of the under 5s are reassured by the free consultations. We look forward to the possibility of longer opening times and a wider range of primary health care services being on offer.
‘We are extremely pleased to note that their price lists will be on display and will be large enough to be clearly visible. Additionally, we understand that the GPs will be actively asking for patient feedback and that the practice will also be running patient groups to see if the new Co-operative medical services are serving their patients well and how they may do better.’
