County among best in country for life expectancy – report

A league table of NHS trusts has been drawn up by the Government to decide which trusts are most in need of new polyclinics, also known as super-surgeries.

North Yorkshire was among the best in the country.

The results are based on patient satisfaction with access to their GP and health outcomes, including life expectancy, cancer and cardiovascular mortality rates, diabetes management and blood pressure readings.

Doctors in the county said this was the clearest message yet that controversial polyclinics were not needed in the county.

The North Yorkshire and York Primary Care Trust (PCT) has announced plans to commission a super surgery in the county within the next year.

Dr Brian McGregor, a York GP and director of North Yorkshire's Local Medical Committee, said: "The money to run them will have to come from the present primary care budget, which means money will be taken away from those services, which are already the best nationally."

The surgeries would open seven days a week, from 8am to 8pm, with appointments and a walk-in service available.

Under legislation passed at the end of last year, all health providers can bid for new NHS contracts, leaving the field open for private firms.

Dr McGregor said he feared the changes threatened the future of traditional family GPs and could make NHS doctors as scarce as NHS dentists.

He said: "It is part of the Government's agenda of bringing private providers into primary care and throwing money at services that will be little used in order to line the pockets of shareholders and private enterprise with public money."

PCT chief executive Janet Soo- Chung said she was pleased the league table demonstrated the good level of service that patients received from their GPs.

She said: "We will continue to work alongside our GP and primary care colleagues to further develop access to services which meet the needs of people living in the area."