I HAVE received confirmation that Hampshire and the Isle of Wight has been allocated £3.4bn in healthcare funding for this financial year (2024/25).

There is a lot of work underway already to get more clinicians on the front line locally, and I wanted to share some of the progress with you.

Official figures show there were 52 more full-time equivalent doctors in September 2023, than there were in September 2022, in Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

And there were 54 more full-time equivalent GPs and 1,540,549 more GP appointments in December 2023 than in December 2019 — across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

READ MORE: Plans for permanent MRI unit at Andover hospital given the go ahead

As well as more GPs, we have invested in technology and recruited more staff in surgeries - making it easier for people to get an appointment, especially during the 8am rush. 

This is good progress, and it comes alongside massive ongoing investment in our local health facilities. 

Speaking of GP appointments, our new multi-million-pound surgery is up and running at Andover War Memorial Hospital; the £6.5m diagnostic hub is open and delivering thousands of tests and scans in the heart of our community; and it’s just been announced that a new permanent MRI suite, in a bespoke building, will replace the mobile unit that has been visiting the hospital. 

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We have also secured hundreds of millions of pounds to drive forward our plans to build a new hospital on Junction 7 of the M3, and work is underway on the design and planning. 

Hampshire is also receiving an extra £535,000 this year to boost adult social care through the Shared Lives scheme. This is a fantastic concept whereby people, who have a bit of space and time, open their homes to care for a vulnerable adult – perhaps someone with a learning disability, mental health issues, or an older person. I’m pleased that this new money will be spent on expanding these shared living arrangements in our community.

Taken together, this is the biggest ever health investment for our area. It will bring down waiting lists and give people ready access to the right care, in the right place.