PLACES for almost a thousand patients have had to be found with new surgeries this week after a Morecambe GP shut up shop over a funding row.

Dr Malcolm Seville closed his Lansdowne Road Surgery in Bare at 6pm last Friday after 25 years service, explaining his decision to leave the NHS in a hand-delivered letter to patients.

West End Medical Practice has stepped in to take on 300 of the 960 patients with the Sykes and Evans Practice accepting the rest.

Dr Seville claims the local health group - responsible for funding NHS GPs in the district - has refused to fund the patients at his practice to the same level as larger health centres.

To provide the personal attention received at his practice 'a higher staff-to-patient ratio' was needed, he says.

But he adds that, despite protestations, funding for staff was to be cut by 12 hours a week from April, leaving him with 12 extra hours of administrative work to carry out.

Morecambe Bay NHS Primary Care Trust's Chris Dent said funds were allocated against set criteria, and Dr Seville had received extra cash for 25 hours administration last year, reducing to 13 hours in April 2003.

"Dr Seville's practice has not been treated any differently to other practices in the area," she says

"We were not aware of the closure until we came into the office on Monday. Dr Seville has been a well-respected doctor in the area for a long time, and we are very sad this has happened."

A Lansdowne Road patient of 20 years Mike Williamson, of Torrisholme, told the Citizen: "I feel very let down by not having advance warning of the closure. I don't want to change to a new doctor, and I don't feel like I want to be someone's cannon fodder in a political feud."

Patients who do not wish to accept the allocated GP can approach other family doctors to see if they will accept them.