NHS patients in the Droitwich area now have access to specialist consultant care on their doorstep in the same building where they see their GP.

The service was launched at the Spire Droitwich Clinic, at Droitwich Medical Centre in Ombersley Street, yesterday.

NHS patients from Droitwich will no longer have to travel to Worcester to see a consultant if they take advantage of the service where GPs and consultants are based under one roof, creating a better working relationship between the two and making it quicker and easier for them to communicate about what care is best for their patients.

The service, which is described as “unique” in the West Midlands, will include orthopaedic clinics specialising in one-stop consultation and diagnosis for problems such as knee and hip replacements and clinics to help patients with gallstones, hernias or who are clinically obese.

Clinic experts hope the range of services for NHS patients will increase when they start getting more through the doors as part of the NHS ‘choose and book’ scheme.

They hope it will improve access to healthcare for 30,000 people in the Droitwich area alone but is also open to people across Worcestershire who are referred by their GP.

There are now up to 15 consultants who perform work at Droitwich but health chiefs at the clinic hope there will be more with an increasing range of specialties in the future.

One patient set to benefit is 59-year-old Roger Jones, of Shepherds Close, Westlands, Droitwich.

He said: “I broke my leg two years ago and they couldn’t put a plaster on it so I had to have a metal plate fitted. Over the last 12 months I have had trouble with the metal plate, which they’re now going to remove.

“This is all now on my doorstep and it’s going to make a big difference to my life. I will still have the surgery in Worcester but I can come here for my follow-up appointments.

“It would normally cost me £24 in taxi fares to get to Worcester and back and I would have to pay for this several times.

“Having been treated by Mr Nadim Aslam at the Worcestershire Royal Hospital two years ago, it was great to discover I could now see him in the same building as my local GP.

“As my hip makes it difficult for me to walk, let alone drive, it was so convenient to pop upstairs, without having to incur travel costs or pay a fortune in parking fees.

“The ability to have on-site X-rays and discuss the results in the same appointment was simply amazing. I’m really looking forward to having the operation so I can get back on my feet again for the new year.”

Spire Healthcare, a private company, treats NHS patients on an individual basis and then is reimbursed by the Department of Health though NHS Worcestershire.