A SATURDAY GP out of hours hub has been reinstated at Inverclyde Royal Hospital.

From 8am until 2pm, a GP and advanced nurse practitioner will be available for face-to-face appointments for patients unable to wait to see their regular GP during the week.

The appointment-only service can be accessed by calling NHS24 on 111.

The service was removed last year, sparking anger among locals and health campaigners who labelled it another dent in the long-term future of the hospital.

Call handlers will triage patients to ensure they receive the most appropriate care and are able to take advantage of telephone and video consultations alongside the face-to-face service.

Health board bosses say the reintroduction of the Saturday service will complement the existing GP home visiting service which remains in operation throughout evenings, weekends and overnight.

Patients who require a GP out of hours, and outside of the Saturday service operating times, will be able to have a phone consultation or receive a face-to-face appointment at the Royal Alexandra Hospital or through the home visiting service.

If patients cannot make their own way to the RAH, a patient transport service remains in operation taking patients to and from their appointments.

Susan Manion, interim chief officer for GP out of hours services, said: “We are pleased to be able to reinstate a Saturday GP out of hours offering for the Inverclyde community.

"This creates more options for urgent care – whether that is over the phone, virtually, or, through a scheduled appointment at an urgent care centre.

"All of these, combined, provide an efficient service, with less waiting time for patients, and more immediate access to the right type of care.

“I would like to thank local GPs who have worked with us to take this step in providing face-to-face as well as virtual consultations locally for IRH patients who urgently need to see a GP when their surgery is closed.”

Melanie McColgan, Clyde sector director at NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde, added: “IRH plays a key role in the ongoing provision of care within Inverclyde, and the GP out of hours service is another vital part of the provision of services from the hospital. This marks our commitment to providing high quality local in the Inverclyde area.

“We would like to remind patients the service should be accessed by appointment only, and anyone who needs to speak to a GP out of normal hours must call NHS24 on 111 in the first instance.”