Campaigners will fight plans to reduce hours at Cannock minor injuries unit

Doctors on cash-strapped Cannock Chase Commissioning Group had planned to shut the Cannock Minor Unit in a bid to save £750,000.

But health bosses then came up with revised plans to get GPs to run the service following a public outcry. Council chiefs though said the proposals were 'wishy washy' and ordered a review to be carried out to see what was feasible.

The specially-formed working group looked at all options including closing the unit, keeping it open or drafting in GPs.

It has now recommended that the unit should remain open, but with reduced hours.

Under the plans, it would open from 11am to 7pm, seven days a week. It is currently open from 8am to midnight.

Cannock councillor Janos Toth, who along with council leader George Adamson has been calling for the unit to be saved, said: "It looks like the CCG has listened to the public after their initial proposals were met with outrage and it showed how out of touch they are.

"It shows the campaign is doing well but this is not enough and the unit should not be closing at 7pm. These proposed opening hours are not good enough for a place the size of Cannock Chase.

"The same provision needs to be kept as we have currently. I believe we can still change the plans as they have already gone back on the proposals to close the unit."

A GP out-of-hours service would begin at 6.30pm until 8am the following day to deal with minor illness.

Bosses say the majority of patients currently attend between 9am and 7pm but staying open between these hours would span more than one shift pattern and 'therefore would incur higher staffing costs'.

The unit would continue to be staffed by two nurses and one receptionist. A report by the CCG states: "This option offers the least disruption to patients whilst allowing an acceptable level of financial savings."

The CCG is overspending by £9 million a year. Health bosses say the unit can take up to 20,000 patients a year but it is attracting only 16,414.

Of those, 76 per cent are able to be treated by a doctor or have to be sent to away to another hospital.

CCG boss Andrew Donald has said the unit in its present form 'does not deliver what is required and sustaining a service which does not deliver is difficult'.

The plans will be discussed by the county council's healthy Staffordshire select committee on Monday.