A COUNCIL is promising that work is being done to address capacity problems at a doctors’ surgery.

Residents have expressed ongoing concerns over the waiting times and queues for an appointment at Elizabeth Courtauld Surgery in Halstead.

There are growing fears over the number of news homes being built in the town, where the surgery is already over capacity.

One patient said: “I have paid NHS contributions for 41 years to now have to queue outside to take a ticket, to wait one hour for a receptionist to decide if my symptoms warrant a nurse or a doctor and then wait another 30 minutes to see a doctor.”

Town councillors Mick Radley and Dave Gronland have now been assigned to meet surgery bosses and other authorities to press for increased capacity in a bid to help reduce waiting times for patients needing treatment.

Meetings have already been held this year and in 2018, but councillors say the NHS process is complex, involving different bodies and authorities at a local and regional level that need to work together to deliver the additional capacity.

A town council spokesman said: “The councillors have and will continue to engage with these groups to press the case for improvements in Halstead.”

Mr Gronland said: “This is an important issue for the residents of Halstead, particularly with the additional housing planned in the coming months and years.

“We are committed to press for the additional capacity required by engaging with all the necessary authorities and being the catalyst for the changes required.

“So far we have built a good working relationships and received a positive response.

“The biggest barrier to progress is the complex processes they need to go through, however, we now understand this much better and will continue to press forward.”

Halstead mayor Andrew Munday added: “Halstead Town Council very much appreciates the very hard work of councillors Gronland and Radley, and hopes that their continued efforts to help the doctors’ surgery will, sooner rather than later, resolve the long-term infrastructure issues for Halstead.”