Angry doctors owed thousands refuse to work

Doctors person warned of "dangerous" staffing levels and "potentially catastrophic" proviso shortages astatine practices supported by a GP absorption company.

Some locum doctors person refused to enactment astatine Welsh practices linked to eHarley Street, due to the fact that they accidental they are collectively owed astir £250,000 successful unpaid wages.

One long-standing doc besides told BBC Wales helium had seen worrying hygiene issues, and Aneurin Bevan wellness committee successful south-east Wales said it was "aware of concerns related to a GP partnership".

But eHarley Street - whose website said it was "putting the joyousness backmost into wide practice" - categorically denied the claims.

Speaking of 1 caller day, Dr Mark Wells, objective pb astatine Brynmawr Medical Practice successful Blaenau Gwent said: "I was the lone GP - for a signifier of 11,000 patients."

He said the surgery should person the equivalent of 5 GPs.

He said that locums – who temporarily capable GP rotas – "are fundamentally refusing to enactment due to the fact that they cognize they are not being paid".

He called staffing levels "dangerous" and said the country had antecedently closed aboriginal due to the fact that of the deficiency of clinicians.

"I had 50 diligent contacts yesterday - if determination were immoderate urgent calls, that would beryllium intolerable for maine to handle."

Brynmawr is contracted by the wellness committee to 2 GPs, and the aforesaid 2 GPs tally eHarley Street.

Staff successful the country said they were told a "central absorption team" astatine eHarley Street would instrumentality attraction of HR, concern and publication locum doctors.

"There's nary warrant of being paid," said Dr Samantha Jenkins, who is owed much than £10,000 aft moving astatine Blaenavon Medical Practice, successful Torfaen, and Brynmawr Medical Practice.

Dr Jenkins said she was told to marque retired her invoices, which BBC Wales has seen, to eHarley Street.

She said doctors were present refusing to work.

"We've got families and homes and mortgages," she said.

Dr Jenkins said determination was constricted oxygen disposable "for a mates of weeks" astatine the Blaenavon practice, which she said was a "huge diligent information concern".

"That's perchance catastrophic if you're successful an exigency situation," she said.

The Welsh surgeries linked to eHarley Street are Brynmawr Medical Practice; Blaenavon Medical Practice; Pontypool Medical Centre; Bryntirion Surgery, Bargoed; Tredegar Health Centre; Aberbeeg Medical Practice; Gelligaer Surgery, Hengoed; The Corporation Road Surgery, Cardiff, and Lliswerry Medical Centre, Newport.

BBC Wales understands astatine slightest 37 clinicians are affected.

Dr Ian Jones, who besides worked astatine the Brynmawr practice, said helium was owed much than £2,000, and BBC Wales has seen correspondence betwixt him and eHarley Street astir the money.

A further 2 doctors, Dr Hussein and Dr Khan - who wanted lone their surnames utilized - worked astatine Lliswerry Medical Centre successful Newport, and said they were owed £20,000 each for locum work.

Dr Hussein, a doc for 25 years, was acrophobic astir the work being offered to patients.

"I consciousness very, very, precise atrocious to my patients," helium said. "They’re not giving the appointments and services needed," helium added.

Dr Hussein said helium understood eHarley Street was moving the country connected a day-to-day basis.

The company's website says it is "putting the joyousness backmost into wide practice".

It says it offers GPs "practice absorption solutions" and its "team of experts" judge successful "liberating" aesculapian professionals from "managerial burden" to supply "high standards of diligent care".

Each Welsh GP country is contracted to idiosyncratic GPs, but each 9 successful Wales diagnostic connected the "our practices" leafage of the institution website. The institution besides supports 15 practices successful England.

Almost each of the Welsh practices are based successful the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board area, and determination is besides 1 successful Cardiff.

BBC Wales has seen correspondence from a aesculapian supplies institution which had stopped its eHarley Street accounts "due to overdue invoices".

"The deficiency of connection is horrendous," said Simon Juniper, who works for a institution supplying locum doctors to surgeries.

He said his concern stopped supplying locums to Welsh surgeries supported by eHarley Street due to the fact that they were owed £25,000.

The GPs contracted to tally the surgeries said they had faced fiscal "challenges", and that immoderate locum payments had been "delayed", but would beryllium settled.

Amy McCrystal, manager astatine Brynmawr Medical Practice, said the "biggest selling point" astir eHarley Street was its cardinal absorption squad wherever "support could beryllium arranged - astir rotas and booking locums".

But she said immoderate unit were inactive waiting for their October payslips, and discarded measure had not been paid, and determination were medicine concerns.

“People are going to the chemist and asking for an exigency proviso of medicine due to the fact that they haven't been capable to get their scripts successful clip from us," she said.

BBC Wales has besides been told determination person been difficulties obtaining supplies similar coiled packs and speculums, and that clinics had been cancelled, causing diligent backlogs.

Ms McCrystal said unit had raised concerns with the wellness board, and visited eHarley Street's HQ successful Leicestershire.

Plaid Cymru Member of the Senedd (MS) Heledd Fychan raised concerns astir eHarley Street successful a caller Senedd debate, and said large firms were "starting to measurement into the marketplace of GP services, buying and moving a fig of surgeries", with eHarley Street "a wide example".

"This continues with the damaging inclination of profits being taken retired of the wellness strategy into backstage pockets, and besides makes the proviso vulnerable," she said.

BBC Wales has learned that section GPs bid for the Brynmawr Medical Practice contract, but were rejected by the wellness board.

Dr Sadequr Rahman, from Cardiff, a doc for 25 years, said helium had ne'er known a concern similar it, and was owed £1,850.

He has worked crossed the Blaenavon, Bryntyrion, Lliswerry, Tredegar and Aberbeeg practices, and said helium had to bash discarded disposal himself astatine Blaenavon.

"We had to instrumentality the bin retired and wrapper the integrative bearer container and enactment it successful the discarded disposal country - which was very, precise full," Dr Rahman said. "If objective discarded is not being disposed of, that is simply a hygiene problem."

In a connection from its solicitors, eHarley Street said it "does not clasp immoderate contracts for General Medical Services (GMS) successful Wales", but that 3 partners clasp "several contracts" for surgeries that "may person been the taxable of the complaints outlined".

It said: "The cognition of wide signifier - is presently nether important fiscal strain," and that "the surgeries operated by the partners person faced akin challenges".

"While immoderate locum payments person regrettably been delayed, the immense bulk person been settled, and the partners are assured that nary outstanding payments volition stay unpaid."

It said Aneurin Bevan University Health Board had "conducted urgent assurance meetings and signifier visits" and recovered the surgeries were "operating wrong the parameters of the GMS contract, with nary concerns identified regarding diligent safety, wellness and safety, staffing levels, oregon resources".

"The partners powerfully judge that galore of the allegations originate from 2 disgruntled employees, without nonsubjective ground oregon corroboration."

A wellness committee spokesperson said it “does not clasp immoderate GMS contracts with e-Harley Street Primary Care Solutions” and that each specified contracts were with “named idiosyncratic GPs”.

The committee said: "We are alert of concerns related to a GP concern wrong the wellness committee portion and are gathering regularly with the GP partners to guarantee they are operating successful enactment with their contractual obligations".

"We admit the precocious request for superior attraction services crossed the country, and this is besides experienced here... we are committed to moving with and supporting our GP partnerships to supply sustainable and reliable services for our population."