Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing Nicola Sturgeon officially opened the new state-of-the-art extension to Motherwell’s Orchard Medical Centre.
The new development includes an additional six consulting rooms at the GP surgery in Ladywell Road, Motherwell.
Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said: “The excellent new extension at Orchard Medical Centre will ensure that patients in the local community are given first class health care in facilities fit for the 21st century.
“I want to see accessible modern facilities throughout Scotland that deliver the services that patients need and provide good working conditions for our dedicated, caring primary care teams to enable them to deliver the best possible care and support. Orchard Medical Centre is a great example of this.
“Surgery staff, the health board and the various construction teams involved should be applauded for their combined efforts in bringing together such an excellent facility.”
The practice has around 12,200 patients and also provides a post MI (Myocardial Infarction) Coronary Heart Disease service to all patients in Motherwell, Bellshill, Newarthill and New Stevenson.
Around 35 people work in the practice including seven GPs, two practice nurses and 16 NHS Lanarkshire community and public health nurses.
Dr Amar Mishra, one of the practice partners, said: “We are delighted to have completed the new extension, which provides improved facilities for our patients in the form of a lift and six new consulting rooms among other improvements.
"I would like to thank NHS Lanarkshire for supporting our project.
"I am sure the improvements will improve not just the comfort and ease of access, but also quality of services we deliver.”
The practice is one of the oldest in Motherwell, having been in existence since the early 1900s.
It moved from its old premises to the current building 11 years ago. At the time it was one of the few purpose-built modern GP practices in Lanarkshire. The building was designed so it could be expanded if required.
NHS Lanarkshire provided £214,000 to help fund the new extension.
Alan Lawrie, director of South Lanarkshire Community Health Partnership and executive lead for primary care, NHS Lanarkshire, said: “The Orchard Medical Centre provides an exemplary model for the provision of primary care services and we were delighted to support this new extension which will further enhance the services it offers patients.
"The practice makes an excellent contribution to the overall health agenda in Lanarkshire.
"It has a forward thinking approach typified by the work it does across a range of services including the post MI pathway, and an in-house diabetes clinic for type 2 patients.”
The practice has offered the one-stop diabetes clinic since 2002 and is the only practice in Lanarkshire that provides it.
This service allows patients to be seen in the surgery by a GP, nurse, dietician and podiatrist instead of having to go to an acute hospital.
This model is now being followed by increasing number of practices in Scotland.
The practice also provides an additional six hours of consultation time per week out with normal working hours as part of the extended hours enhanced service.
Three GPs work between 6pm – 8pm on Monday evenings and between them provide an additional 24 appointments per week for their patients, an average of 1,069 per year.