GPs in Wiltshire are working on a plan to bring care closer to people’s home rather than sending them to hospital.

Wiltshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), which took over planning and buying health services from NHS Wiltshire in April, is going to have teams of health professionals and social carers working with particular GP practices to provide services to populations of 20,000 people.

At last Tuesday's annual meeting of the CCG, Dr Simon Burrell, a GP in Corsham and chairman of North and East Wiltshire group of GPs, said: “We want to make sure the patient is at the centre of what we do. We are creating a single bunch of people in a locality to look after you.

"Our philosophy is to make sure we look after the whole person, not the segments of people.”

The AGM was told that the CCG had improved diagnosis waits for people with dementia.

Dr Celia Grummitt, a GP in Salisbury and vice-chairman of Sarum group of GPs, said a year ago people were waiting up to a year for a memory clinic appointment in Wiltshire.

She said: “Now people can be seen within four weeks and most are diagnosed within 12 weeks.

"GPs, supported by memory clinic nurses, now see and diagnose simple cases and take back their care. With Public Health colleagues at Wiltshire Council we will be creating dementia friendly communities."