FORMAL public consultation on possible plans to relocate hospital services from the Alexandra Hospital to elsewhere in the county have been put back.

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust chiefs say this follows a tremendous public response to the clinical service and finance review and in recognition of the need for more detailed analysis of possible options.

Trust chairman Michael O'Riordan said: "We had previously envisaged that a period of formal public consultation on any major service changes could begin immediately after the Christmas break.

"It has now become clear that more detailed work is needed to ensure that any proposals which go out to formal consultation are clinically sound, based on the most robust possible data, can be achieved and will enable us to make the cost improvements that we need to make."

He said its ongoing pre-consultation exercise was bringing in comments and suggestions from staff, clinical colleagues and people across the county, many of which deserved further consideration.

The project board is due to meet again in January. Until then work will be done on further analysis and implementing some changes and improvements that do not need to be the subject of formal consultation.

Mr O'Riordan said it was likely by the end of the year more day-care activity would be transferred to Kidderminster from the Alexandra and Worcestershire Royal.

He added: "We have also decided, following many comments and further work, that there is nothing to be gained from changing cancer outpatient services, and they will continue to be provided on all three sites for the foreseeable future."

He said the Trust was continuing to explore possible changes to the way it cared for some emergency patients.

Mr O'Riordan added: "The complete closure of the A&E unit at the Alexandra has never been put forward as an option.

"However, more work is going to be done to assess whether we might be able to treat emergency surgical and trauma patients more effectively in a centralised unit at Worcester, but having medical care, including coronary care, at the Alexandra, together with the care of the many patients treated as minor injuries."

He said further work was also essential on possible options of the provision of maternity services in Worcestershire, which includes gynaecological, obstetric ad paediatric services.