Former patients of the shuttered Bridge of Earn practice have raised safety concerns after they were asked to self report their medication to their new GPs because records had not been transferred over.
One patient, who has asked to remain anonymous, was transferred to the Taymount practice in Perth earlier this month after Bridge of Earn was closed down at the end of August.
However when the patient called the new health centre on Wednesday they were told the system only had details of their name and date of birth and that no other records were held there.
Concerns were raised further after they were asked to provide information on their medication and dosages because the data transfer had not yet been completed.
The patient said: “They asked what medicines I’m on and what dosages. It was very concerning to me as a patient.
“I was told that each record takes an hour to transfer and that there’s 1,300 records to transfer over. So my worry is how long is that going to take?
“NHS Tayside have not handled it very well. Taymount surgery is overrun. I can’t fault the chemist in Bridge of Earn and the Taymount staff are trying their best but they’re stretched to the max.”
Luke Graham, Conservative MP for Ochil and South Perthshire, said “promises have been broken” over the move.
Mr Graham said: “I have been contacted by constituents who have raised the issue of their files not being transferred to their new practices in a timely manner.
“I have great concerns about the impact of this on patient safety: constituents have said they are advising doctors on their medications and dosages, and the lack of files has impacted people who are being assessed by the Department for Work and Pensions.
“A promise was made to my constituents that records would be transferred to the appropriate time line and that no constituent would be left in a situation where they couldn’t access the services and details this required.
“It appears this promise has been broken.”
A spokesperson for NHS Tayside and Perth and Kinross Health and Social Care Partnership said: “It is really important that patients know that even during the ongoing transfer of patient records, GPs in their new practice can still access Bridge of Earn patient records to support treatment and care.
“Patients should be reassured that when they ask for repeat prescriptions, GPs and/ or pharmacy teams will consider and check all individual patient requests for medication and they will prescribe as clinically appropriate.
“When patients inform their new GP practice of their pharmacy details, their repeat prescription ordering service can be accessed from their community pharmacy, as it always has been.”
The closure of the Bridge of Earn surgery has led to a number of complaints locally. Villagers said they only found out the two GPs were resigning from their posts at the end of August through social media and there were concerns about the process of moving them to new practices.
