MOVING an NHS walk-in health centre to GWH will disadvantage the very people it was meant to serve, says a senior councillor.

Bob Wright, Labour member for central on the borough council, has written to the Clinical Commissioning Group saying he’s worried that vulnerable people will be left without anywhere to go.

He said: “When the walk-in centre was opened, it was designed for people who didn’t have a GP to go to – homeless people, those who were new to Swindon. Or people working in the town during the week, who needed to see someone quickly.

“But it became very busy. The difficulties a lot of people had in making appointments with their GP because of the IMH issues meant they’d give up and go to the walk-in centre.

"That wasn’t really what it was designed to do.

“Now the CCG is moving most of the services to Great Western Hospital, but that won’t help the people who needed the walk-in centre in the first place.

“Homeless people won’t travel down to the hospital – they don’t have the money to do that.”

Coun Wright has written to the CCG, which is responsible for organising and paying for such health services outlining his concern.

He said: “It now appears that as a result of too much demand for the walk-in service it has been felt necessary not to improve the service but to make it much more difficult to obtain.

“We have heard that local doctors who cannot cope with demand have advised patients to go to the town centre walk-in centre.

“How do you propose not to adversely affect those disadvantaged by circumstance and means?"

A spokesman for the CCG said: “We know that Swindon’s walk-in centre is a popular option for people needing on-the-day healthcare.

"But we know that more and more of the available slots at the centre are being taken by patients whose care or treatment could be provided with a pre-booked appointment at their GP practice.

“This, along with the national directive from NHS England to simplify the way in which people access local urgent care, is why we are looking at making some changes to the current service.

“We are conducting an audit, exploring patients’ reasons for visiting, as well as asking where they would go as an alternative. The results will be used to influence any future decisions.

“Regardless of any changes made, services for homeless people, as well as the existing GP practices based elsewhere in the building, will not be affected.”

Previously Nicki Millin, the CCG accountable officer told the borough council’s health overview and scrutiny committee a number of services will definitely continue at the Islington Street site, including a children’s clinic, treatment for the homeless, urgent on-the-day treatment which would be booked after a call to a patient’s GP, blood services and wound care – where patients can get wounds stitched – but she said that would need to be a booked appointment service.