The crisis facing ‘fragile’ GP surgeries in Ayrshire is reaching a critical stage - with the revelation that two new doctors have to be hired to replace every retiring doctor.

Over the last couple of years, the lack of new doctors taking up GP positions has left the service in dire straits.

Earlier this year, one thousand patients from Townhead Surgery in Irvine were moved to a different practice due to a shortage of GPs.

It came very close to Townhead surgery having to close down leaving 13,800 patients without a GP.

North Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership - which includes North Ayrshire Council and NHS Ayrshire and Arran - will consider a report on the growing crisis at a meeting later this week.

A report states that the increased demand for services, together with a reduced share of finances had placed GP surgeries under huge stress.

It also reveals that, thanks to fewer new doctors wishing to work full-time hours, they now had to hire two to replace every senior GP who leaves a surgery.

As a result of the shortage, North Ayrshire’s surgeries have become more and more reliant on locum doctors - more costly than a permanent contracted doctor.

The number of retiring GPs is now greater than the number of new graduates joining up.

The report states: “The age profile of local General Medical Practitioners has become skewed with a higher proportion towards the end of their careers, resulting in the rate of retiral exceeding new entrants to the profession.

“This situation has been exacerbated by increasing difficulty in filling all available GP Trainee vacancies locally, resulting in a lack of connection between newly qualified GPs and the local area.

“It is also recognised that newly qualified GPs prefer to work on a less-than-full-time basis and are increasingly opting for ‘portfolio careers’ with a part-time practice-based commitment (five to six GP sessions = 2 ½ to 3 days) and a commitment to particular area of interest outwith traditional general practice.

“The result of this being that, to sustain current levels of medical cover within General Medical Practices, a higher number of new GPs are required than those who are retiring from a traditional session commitment (four to four and a half days) within a practice.

“As a result, for every experienced GP who retires or leaves the area, two newly qualified GPs will need to be recruited to provide like-for-like medical cover.”

According to the report: “Given the level of patient need in North Ayrshire and the known workforce and financial pressures being experienced locally, General Medical Services are becoming increasingly fragile and there is a need to act now to ensure high quality care is sustained into the future.”

The Health and Social Care Partnership is set to agree a new approach to supporting and developing GP services, using a successful ‘multi-disciplinary’ which has been adopted in Kilwinning.

“North Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership has identified Kilwinning as an ‘Exemplar Locality’ within which to develop multi -disciplinary team working across the Children and Families; Mental Health; and Community Care Teams.

“It is envisaged that this approach will relieve significant strain on General Medical Service provision in the area as the Multi-Disciplinary Teams begin to remove traditional bureaucracy associated with referral to specialist care and assumes responsibility for the case management of those with the most complex needs.”