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Communities lose two family planning clinics

Laura Thistlethwaite
24/ 4/2008

USERS of family planning clinics in Levenshulme and Chorlton are outraged that their services are to be centralised.

In a bid to modernise services, contraceptive and sexual health clinics will be relocated from Levenshulme and Chorlton Health Centres to a new unit at Manchester Royal Infirmary.

Residents who use the twice-weekly drop-in clinics are angry about the move to centralise services.

Mum-of-two Marie-Angelique Bueler, of the Friends of Levenshulme, said: "I went to the drop-in clinic and the nurse told me it would be moving to the MRI. I am furious that they are centralising our local services, it will make it so much harder for people who don’t drive or those with children to get to.

"It’s taking another facility away from the community and will increase the numbers of appointments made to GPs."

Manchester PCT say the plans are in line with a consultation held with staff and patients and an independent review to improve sexual health services.

Their aim is to increase patient access to a wide range of contraception and sexual services across the city by having main hubs with daily clinics.

A specialist clinic at MRI will be operational from the end of next month, following completion of the new £3m purpose-built Hathersage sexual health centre on Upper Brook Street.

Family planning clinics in both Chorlton and Levenshulme will be transferred when the new centre opens.

Services have already been transferred from Withington’s Palatine Centre, to Withington Community Hospital and Forum Health in Wythenshawe.

Dr Asha Kasliwal, Clinical Director of Contraceptive and Sexual Health Services, said: "Service users across Central and South Manchester will have better access to a full range of general and specialist services. Previously, this was only available from one centre rather.

"There will be weekday clinics with a range of opening hours with both drop-in sessions and appointments at convenient times. There will be Saturday clinics at Forum Health and the Hathersage Centre and more dedicated sessions for young people under 25.

"We’ve also extended our outreach nursing team that works with vulnerable young people in non-traditional settings. This has enabled Manchester PCT to modernise and improve its contraception and sexual health services to focus on providing a more specialist service for people with more complex needs and target young people in line with Manchester’s strategy to reduce teenage pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases."