I have asked the South Eastern Health Board about the matter raised by the Deputy and they have advised that the position is as follows. Currently, general practitioners working in Fethard, Duncannon, Newbawn and Taghmon operate on a one-in-two rota during weekdays and bank holiday periods. Since October 1998, they have operated on a one-in-four rota during the weekend period of Saturday mid-day to 8 a.m. Monday.
The furthest distance from health centre to health centre in this one-in-four rota is 16 miles, which takes approximately 25 minutes travel time. The general practitioners involved acknowledged that there were some minor communications difficulties and, indeed, met with local residents' groups to address and resolve those difficulties since they are concerned to ensure the provision of a quality out of hours service to their patients.
I should add that since the commencement of their one-in-four rota there has been no recorded complaint from any patient in the geographical area concerned. Further, the health board keeps the matter of services under ongoing review in order to ensure that general practitioners meet their contracted responsibilities to their patients. However, if the Deputy is aware of any specific case or complaint, I will be happy to have the matter further examined by the board.