Debate contribution: Multidisciplinary Teams in GP Practices: North Belfast

Debate contribution by Ms Carál Ní Chuilín on 21 April 2026.

MLA

Ms Carál Ní Chuilín

Party at the time

Sinn Féin

Date

21 April 2026

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Adjournment

Heading

Multidisciplinary Teams in GP Practices: North Belfast

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5498132

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Go raibh maith agat, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle.

First, I thank the Business Committee for selecting this topic for an Adjournment debate. I am delighted to see the Minister here in what is his second week on the trot of dealing with issues relating to North Belfast. That is much appreciated. Also, some of the GPs from North Belfast are in the Public Gallery for the debate. I am sure that if we were to put "GP" into a search of the Hansard public record, we would get thousands of hits. One thing that we are concerned about is that GP practices in North Belfast were supposed to have their multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) fully rolled out at the beginning of April, but that has not yet been done. Priority was given to mental health services, which we all support. For anybody for who does not know, multidisciplinary teams are about the inclusion of a mental health nurse, a physio and a social worker in a busy practice. Take one practice in Clifton Street as an example. It has 10,000 patients. It is in one of the most deprived areas of Belfast, in the North and maybe even on this island. It is referred to as a "deep end" practice, which is Health Department speak for its needing to be prioritised and resourced accordingly. The Minister is on the record about that, as, indeed, are many other Members. Look at BT15. If you live around Carlisle Circus, the New Lodge or the lower Shankill, your life expectancy is a lot less than it is if you live further up the Antrim Road, which is still within BT15. Our GP practices have been at the coalface for a long time. GPs often contact me, as an elected rep, about housing, letters of support for their patients to access surgery, getting proper community support for mental health services and supporting families through autism and ADHD medication. I am sure that it is the same for many Members. The difficulty in North Belfast is that none of us wants to say that we are in the most deprived ward on the island. Everyone's focus is on patients' needs, so that is a good place to start. The GPs' patients are our constituents. We all focus on that. Clifton Street is not the only surgery that has difficulties, but the difficulty for Clifton Street surgery is that it is prepared to develop a bigger site to encompass the services that are part of a multidisciplinary team, as well as any additional services, and land has been identified at Girdwood, but that land is currently held by the Minister for Communities. Minister, I would appreciate it if you could speak to the Minister for Communities about that. That is an example of a practice on a busy road in a busy area that is on an interface. It has patients from across the constituency and tries to help everybody, regardless, but it is not working. That is a practical example of something that could be done. I am envious of some of our colleagues in other parts of Belfast, particularly in the west. They have told me about the roll-out of the multidisciplinary team approach in practices. I made it my business to speak to one of the practices in West Belfast, and I was told about what is working. I was also told that, at the minute, everything is dependent on resources, but it is working well. When we look at a joined-up approach and ending silos — we are all familiar with that language — I like the idea that that would be a one-stop shop for people, most of whom would be able to walk through the door and back out again. In West Belfast, a lot of them walk in, get awful news and then get wrap-around service support, and we want to see that in North Belfast. I appreciate the fact that resources are tight — we all do. I also appreciate that, when it comes to health, we have to fight our corner. I very respectfully say to the Minister that I understand that there is a need to put money into the private sector in order to get waiting lists down for people who are in agony as they wait for operations. We all get that. However, that investment is front-loaded for cases that are almost non-problematic, even though the surgeries are quite severe and people are very stressed out about getting them. We need to remember that the investment needs to be front-loaded towards the point at which people need it: our health and social care system, which is free at the point of need and free at the point of delivery. We all cherish that. We are lucky, in North Belfast, to work with amazing GPs who, for the most part, in their practices look not just at the person but at all their circumstances. They are proactive in trying to get people the best support that they can. They almost act like social workers, as it is. We can claim some of that as well; we recognise part of that. As an elected representative, however, I want — as do the other representatives who are here in the Chamber — to fight our corner in North Belfast to make sure that we all get the best for GPs and patients. The Minister will be well aware of the figures, so I will not recite them, but I will talk about the levels of complexity faced by some. It is no coincidence that, in areas of deprivation, there is a clear link between poverty and ill health. That link is well established and accepted. There is also a recognition, by all of us as political reps, that this place is underfunded compared with our level of need. We are at the bottom of the ladder when compared with Scotland, Wales and England. That is not good enough. We need to get more money in order to make sure that money goes to front-line services, where it is needed, and that it is prioritised.

Within that, you have GPs who, in the whole big Health bubble, are fighting their corner, and we are here today to fight their corner, too, particularly when it comes to dealing with mental health and the legacy of the conflict, which now affects four generations.

I know that it is the case across the board, but, compared with many other constituencies, North Belfast was decimated — absolutely decimated — by political conflict. That is now having an impact on third and fourth generations. I am seeing the impact of the conflict on grandparents, parents, grandchildren and now great-grandchildren. I am not medically trained, but I recognise trauma. Given that some people who go to a GP practice do not even realise that they are traumatised or are suffering from anxiety and stress, we need to give our GPs the time, the flexibility and the space to get help and support to where it is needed and to make sure that that is consistent at the point where people can get it. Right treatment, right time, right place. The best door to walk through without there being any stigma is that of a doctors' surgery. No one knows what you are going in for, and it is none of their business. When you go into a GP surgery, you should not then have to walk round 12 doors to find out which one you go through. That is why we want to have this debate today. We want to make sure that Clifton Street Surgery and all the other surgeries that have come to us have their ask for support through the full roll-out of multidisciplinary teams met. Those surgeries have 10,000 patients, who are our constituents. Over 50% of them are living in chronic pain, and over 50% of them will probably die well before their time, because of the economic, social and political circumstances in which they grew up. The best thing that we can do is equip our GPs with what they need in order to provide the best care for their patients and our constituents. I will leave it at that.

1,380 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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