A 10-day old baby and a 101-year old woman were among those invited to celebrate the official reopening of the Bowthorpe Health Centre after a major refurbishment.
The centre, part of the Trinity and Bowthorpe Medical Practice, has been looking after the health of people in the Bowthorpe area since the early 1980s but has undergone a major revamp over the past eight months to bring the building up to modern standards and ensure it can cope with increased demand.
At just over a week old Marieme-Lissa Ndiaye is the youngest user of the Bowthorpe Health Centre while 101-year-old Florence Perowne, known as Maisie, is the oldest patient at the practice and both were on hand to celebrate the landmark chapter in the centre's history.
Marieme-Lissa's mother Alice, 36, who lives in Bowthorpe, said she thought the changes helped transform the 'out of date' building and ensure the practice was 'up there' with others in the area while Mrs Perowne, who has been a patient for 29 years, said she was 'pleased with how it looks'.
Sonja Kerridge, practice manager, said she was delighted with the new look which has created a more spacious and user-friendly environment for its team of seven doctors, one professor of GP medicine, 25 staff and nearly 8,000 patients.
She said: 'I'm pleased with how everything has gone. They've (the patients) all come in and said it looks so different. They need to be treated in an up-to-date, modern and safe environment and know that everything is up to Care Quality Commission (CQC) standard.'
Improvements to the health centre, based at Wendene, include larger treatment rooms with easier access for parents with prams and disabled people, disabled toilets and nurses rooms positioned next to doctors' rooms to allow easier communication..
The new-look centre was officially opened by Lord Mayor of Norwich Keith Driver who said he was impressed having been shown round the centre.
Mr Driver, who admitted it was a far cry from his last visit about 10 years ago when it looked a bit the 'worse for wear', said: 'I just think what they've got here is fantastic and the Bowthorpe people should be really proud of what's going on.'
Dr Nick Morton, who has been a GP at the practice for 20 years, said it was fantastic to be able to work in the new surroundings.
He said: 'I think it allows us to be fit for the 21st century. It allows us to treat our patients the way we want to treat them and the people of Bowthorpe should be very proud of their health centre.'
To find out more about the Trinity and Bowthorpe Medical Practice log on to www.trinityandbowthorpe.co.uk or call 01603 748043.
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