A message from Dr Stephen Smith

I will be retiring on 31st March 2026 after having worked at the Windrush Medical Practice for nearly 30 years.

Over this time, it has been my privilege to have been your doctor and to have accompanied many of you and your family through periods of ill health.

During my time here the practice has seen many changes and has grown from its prefab. building with just 12,500 patients, 6 doctors and roughly 20 staff to its current modern purpose-built premises with over 21,000 patients, 17 doctors and over 100 staff.

Reflecting the changes in the wider NHS, the care we provide has changed beyond recognition. The increasing complexity of medical problems that are now managed in the practice has required GPs to learn new skills and to utilise a range of other health care professionals. This had led to improve the quality of care and patient safety in many areas.

The ethos of the practice, however, has remained unchanged and is the same as that which attracted me to first join in 1996. Namely, that we really do care about you, our patients, and work incredibly hard to continue to improve the quality of the service we provide in often the most challenging of circumstances. I am incredibly proud of the commitment of all our team in pushing themselves beyond the call of duty to achieve this goal.

I leave the practice in a good place with a stable team to continue the good work. My replacement, your GP, will be Dr Ram Kumar who you may have met as a locum in the practice and in whom we are confident that your care will continue as seamlessly as possible and to the high standards we all set ourselves.

Published: Mar 5, 2026