No evidence for proposals

I write in response to your report, "Five pounds of potatoes and a health check please" (13 December), which stated that BMA Scotland welcomed the proposed walk-in centres put forward in the Scottish Government's action plan for health and wellbeing.

However, I would like to take this opportunity to clarify that, at this stage, we do not believe that evidence exists to support these proposals.

The BMA has broadly welcomed the proposals outlined in Better Health, Better Care in terms of the continued focus to shift the balance of care closer to patients' homes rather than introducing major system changes that would result in upheaval and disruption for frontline staff.

However, before we come to any conclusion on the plans for walk-in centres, we are keen to see evidence that demonstrates that extending the role of community pharmacies to offer a wider range of primary care services will significantly improve the care for patients and deliver value for money. Vast additional resources will be required for this plan and this must be taken into account, as well as issues such as information sharing on patient records and ensuring efficiency in the system.

(DR) DEAN MARSHALL
Chairman, BMA's Scottish GPs Committee
Queen Street
Edinburgh