GP walk-in clinic extends hours after temporary closure

A GP walk-in clinic in the Borders has extended its hours - and opened to more patients - after being forced to close due to "temporary staffing pressures".

The pilot service at Hawick Community Hospital opened at the end of April as part of a network of sites across Scotland where patients have access to GP-led care without an appointment.

It had to close on Tuesday and Wednesday last week but reopened on Thursday.

NHS Borders said it was now open 12:00 to 20:00 from Tuesday to Friday and was available to patients with the Jedburgh and Newcastleton practices, as well as the Selkirk practice and the Mairches and Teviot practices in Hawick.

The clinic is part of a nationwide plan designed to tackle the so-called "8am rush" for doctors' appointments.

The Hawick service - which launched on 28 April - was previously available from 14:00 to 18:00 Tuesday to Friday.

It is designed to help people with "new, short-term health problems that need timely assessment but are not emergencies".

NHS Borders said nearly 400 people had used the service since it opened with an average waiting time of between 20 and 25 minutes.

It added that feedback on the service had been "overwhelmingly positive" so far with 91.5% of patients rating their experience as "very good."

"We continue to monitor the service as the pilot progresses and would like to thank people for their effective use of this new service," the health board said.