Merger of Stewart Medical Centre and Elmwood Medical Centre

This is a brief overview for patients of what is happening with Stewart Medical Centre and Elmwood Medical Centre.

Current services and background

The partnership of Stewart Medical Centre took over the ownership and management of Elmwood Medical Centre in July 2025, following the previous owner's decision to step away from the practice. Since this point, we have been running the two practices, but with two separate patient lists.

We are currently able to offer a limited service to those patients still registered with Elmwood Medical Centre, largely down to the very minimal staff that were in place at the time of the acquisition. We have been able to bolster this group of staff and offer better access to patients immediately, but are still limited in what we can offer currently, without negatively impacting on the services available at Stewart Medical Centre.

What is happening

Patient lists of Stewart Medical Centre and Elmwood Medical Centre will merge into one list. This will create a single, unified practice operating across two sites with a single central telephone number and full access for all patients to all the services that we currently offer at Stewart Medical Centre.

An expanded clinical and administration team will give patients better access to appointments and services, and a better overall experience.

The merged practice will be named Stewart Medical Centre. 

The full merger will take place on October 7th 2025

Impacts of the Merger

•      Patients do not need to re-register.

•      Patients will be seen at both sites.

•      Housebound patients – Services will continue without disruption.

•      Improved Access and Increased Workforce – An increase in staffing levels in both the clinical and non-clinical teams will result in shorter telephone queues, more appointments, and a better overall patient experience.

•      Continuity of Care – Our recruitment of additional staff commenced a full six months prior to the acquisition, so patients have had an opportunity to get used to new clinical staff. We are working hard on having a consistent approach and feel across both practices so that patients have a familiar experience when visiting either site.

•      Quality of Care – The expanded clinical team will continue to provide the high quality, personal care that patients have come to expect from Stewart Medical Centre.

•      Expanded Services – With the merger we will be able to offer a wider range of services both directly and through other providers, with minor operations and sexual health services adding to an onsite pharmacy, and physio and a range of other health providers across two sites.

•      Shared Resources – Our joined-up team are already working on streamlining and improving existing processes. 

Tell us what you think

We want to hear your views and any concerns about the merger to help us understand the impact and any mitigations that might be put in place. We will be hosting face-to-face events at Buxton Methodist Church to gather everyone's thoughts, concerns and questions. This will all be considered by the practice and reasonable and proportionate mitigations put in place. 

We have also invited the Patient Participation Group (PPG) to the engagement events to support with any questions.

Engagement events

Engagement events will be running over the next few weeks. See below for details:

Other ways to ask questions, raise concerns or give feedback:

 Email us on admin.stewartmedical@nhs.net

 Or call us on 01298 22 338 and ask to speak with Graham Chipp (Practice Manager)

Accessibility Needs

If you have any accessibility needs or would like information in a different format, please contact Graham Chipp on admin.stewartmedical@nhs.net or 01298 22 338.

What happens next?

All the feedback will be compiled into a report. The practice will then consciously consider the feedback and, where possible, put reasonable and proportionate mitigations in place. The report will also be taken to NHS Derby and Derbyshire Integrated Care Board's Primary Care Subgroup for assurance. We will keep everyone informed about the next steps on the practice website.