A respected GP has thanked patients for their years of support after his surgery closed.

Dr Fergal O'Driscoll set up Westwood Surgery in Westwood Avenue, Lowestoft 20 years ago, having started as a GP 10 years earlier at what is now the Rosedale Surgery.

Recently services at the surgery have been provided by East Coast Community Healthcare (ECCH) - until it decided to move the services it was providing to 2,000 patients there to the Kirkley Mill Health Centre.

The move caused concern amongst residents at the time, with Dr O'Driscoll saying he was shocked by the decision.

But in a letter he said he would be working at Kirkley Mill in the future and thanked those who had supported him at Westwood Surgery over the past two decades.

'I would also like to thank all members of our team who have worked with us through those years,' he said.

'We have had our ups and our downs but we always worked hard to provide our patients with the best care possible.

'This move marks the end of an era for me.

'Thank you to everyone for making my dream of being a community family GP come true.

'I would also like to thank the James Paget University Hospital, Lowestoft Hospital, Airey Close, Norfolk and Suffolk Mental Health Trust, the East of England Ambulance Service, the out-of-hours services, East Coast Community Healthcare and the clinical commissioning group - all of whom have made the provision of local health services possible and continue to do so.

'Could I also thank all the hard working carers, both in the community and in residential/nursing homes, who are playing an increasingly crucial role within the NHS.

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