The HSE has said it was “disappointed” that a private GP company pulled out of running a vital out-of-hours service in the midlands. An eleventh hour temporary deal halted the immediate closure of MIDOC GP service on New Year’s Day.
The MIDOC service, which has been running for 20 years, and covers the counties of Laois, Longford, Offaly and Westmeath with a combined population of 300,000, had come under financial strain.
Established in 2002, MIDOC was formed by a group of local GPs. However, the private GP company which ran the service, MIDOC GP CLG, stopped trading on December 31st last year.
In a statement the HSE said: “The HSE is disappointed that MIDOC CP CLG made the decision to cease trading, effective midnight 31st December, 2022, when we were looking to provide a sustainable model going forward. HSE Midlands Louth Meath Community Healthcare had been engaging with MIDOC CP CLG for a number of months to help address the financial challenges it faced.”
The HSE said there was no disruption to the urgent out-of-hours GP services in the midlands. “The only change is that the private company, MIDOC GP CLG, which co-ordinated the rotas and payments for the local GPs and locum GPs who worked in the out-of-hours service for Laois, Offaly, Mullingar and Longford ceased trading on December 31st, 2022,” the HSE said.
The HSE Midlands Louth Meath Community Healthcare Organisation said arrangements have been put in place between the HSE and local GPs to ensure continuity of care.
Patients with urgent medical needs will continue to access the service as normal by calling 1800 302 702 and, if required, they will be directed to one of the existing HSE-owned treatment centres, a system put in place on New Year’s Day.
The HSE said it is currently in the process of seeking an alternative provider with a view to having it in place shortly. It said the interim service would operate in the interim. It remains unclear if the service will be publicly or privately run in the future.
Former justice and foreign affairs minister and Charlie Flanagan, a local TD, said he was “shocked and saddened” to hear that MIDOC had been threatened with closure but “pleased an interim solution has been found”.