Healthcare consultation event launched as Carnlough residents share concerns over local services

Carnlough Heritage Hub, County Antrim

A drop-in event was held on Monday evening (July 6) at the Heritage Hub in Carnlough Town Hall to gather the views of the community on healthcare provision in the coastal area.

The event was organised by Rural Community Network to gather residents’ views on primary and community healthcare services locally.

Rural Community Network says it wants to hear opinions on “what is working and what can be improved locally”, with feedback helping to inform research and the development of a community action plan.

The organisation is a regional voluntary body which supports rural communities across Northern Ireland to address issues including inequality, community development, good relations and poverty. It also works to build the capacity and skills of community groups, helping them to have a stronger voice in policy-making.

The Cushendall-based Glens of Antrim Medical Centre agreed to accept 1,381 patients in February 2017 following the closure of a GP practice in Glenarm, with the practice opening a surgery on Harbour Road in Carnlough.

The Glens of Antrim Medical Centre has previously said it believed from the outset that a “full-time service” would be provided in Carnlough. However, it received additional temporary funding support for just three years, which was later extended for a further year due to the impact of Covid-19.

The practice then continued to fund a full-time service in Carnlough for another year at its own expense.

The Department of Health has previously stated that the funding arrangement “was never intended to last indefinitely” and was over and above the standard funding all GP practices receive based on their patient population.

Mid and East Antrim Borough Council previously called for the reinstatement of fully funded GP services in the seaside village after surgery hours were reduced to two half-days per week in 2022, when the practice said it could no longer meet the cost of providing a full-time service in Carnlough. The surgery currently continues to operate on two mornings each week.

Kate Clifford, of Rural Community Network, said the drop-in session in Carnlough is “part of a broader project across Northern Ireland looking at how the health service is configured in rural areas”.

“We are aware of the issues they have in relation to remoteness and health service changes,” she said.

She added that rural areas

Ms Clifford also said the project would consider the impact of patients having to travel to access healthcare services, as well as the role of communities in supporting social care.