A senior GP in Falkirk has questioned an underspend on primary care locally at a time when GP services are under "extreme pressure" and "need investment to provide better services to the people of Falkirk".
Falkirk's Integration Joint Board (IJB), which oversees health and social care in Falkirk, reported an underspend of around £2 million, which it says will be carried forward into its general reserve.
Dr David Herron, GP clinical lead for Falkirk Health and Social Care Partnership, said it was disappointing that £400,000 of this underspend related to primary care services at a time when people in Falkirk are finding it difficult to get appointments and access to GP services.
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At a recent meeting of the IJB, he said: "How do we ensure we are more responsive next year to changes and ensure that we don't have an underspend in these areas because these areas are ones we should be putting extra funding in?
"I think it's really important to the people of Falkirk that they have access to primary care services.
"We're struggling from a lack of investment and we can't provide the staff and services that the people of Falkirk need - then we see a budget that shows an underspend."
There was also an underspend in community health care, which was mainly due to the closure of four wards in Falkirk Community Hospital (FCH), which accounts for £2.095m of the year-to-date underspend.
Last June, members of the IJB agreed that the cash freed up by the closure of the wards should be directed toward community care.
Members of the board heard that much of the underspend links to staff vacancies.
Despite huge efforts and 'over-recruitment' across services, filling posts continues to prove difficult.
Overall, however, Primary Care saw an overspend of £1.790 million, including an overspend of £2.166 million on prescribing.
Commenting after the meeting, Steven Kirkwood, Chief Finance Officer, Falkirk Health and Social Care Partnership said: “Our Integration Joint Board is responsible for allocating finances and resources wisely, delivering services in the face of challenging local and national circumstances.
“We will always maximise the opportunity provided from every available resource. To this end, efforts were progressed during 2022/23 to over-recruit to key service areas including the multi-disciplinary teams that support GP Practices, including pharmacotherapy staff and advanced nurse practitioners.”
“While our forecast position at the end of the year will be an overspend of £3.788m against the set aside budget, managed by NHS Forth Valley, and an underspend of £2.119m against the integrated budget, these integrated funds will be carried forward to supplement our plans for next year and beyond.
“This requires robust financial planning and long-term strategic planning to ensure resources are allocated responsibly and deliver best value for the people of Falkirk.”
