HEALTH bosses tasked with producing a comprehensive plan for primary care in and around Witney have been accused of making little progress and failing to do as instructed.

In July an independent panel of experts exploring the closure of Deer Park Medical Centre demanded Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group (OCCG) immediately commission a six-month project to develop a comprehensive plan for primary care and related services.

Now, more than two months on, campaigners fear the plan is making little progress and have urged OCCG to engage with patients in the town.

OCCG said it will hold two public events in the next six weeks and that its plan will be published in December.

Brenda Churchill, deputy mayor of Witney, said OCCG seemed to be exploring primary care in West Oxfordshire as a whole, without specifically focussing on Witney and its surrounding area.

She said: “It is slow going and we’re not hopeful about the outcome. We don’t think they’re doing what they’ve been instructed to do.

"They were told to produce a plan for Witney.

“They also have to consult with the public, not just former Deer Park patients but everyone.

"We’ve been pushing them to hold public meetings which is something they seem reluctant to do.

“They’re saying now that the plan will be ready in December – but it takes much longer than that to run a consultation if it’s done properly.”

The report which demanded the plan was the result of an assessment by the Independent Reconfiguration Panel (IRP) ordered by Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

It explored the way health bosses managed the March closure of Deer Park Medical Centre.

In its report, the IRP said OCCG did not do enough to engage with patients and demanded it create a comprehensive plan for care in Witney.

It also revealed that, as of July, more than 1,000 former Deer Park patients out of about 4,000 had yet to register elsewhere and urged OCCG to ensure these patients are registered with another practice.

Despite the IRP's strong words, Mrs Churchill, former chairwoman of Deer Park’s patient participation group, said she did not hold out much hope.

She continued: “They’re just doing the same thing that they have always done and who’s going to stop them?

"The only person who has ever made them stop and think is us.

“None of us trust OCCG, They’ve misled us in the past and it’s going to be hard graft to get that trust back.”

OCCG said it is already taking a number of steps to get the plan into shape.

Spokeswoman Julia Stackhouse said: "Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group is already taking forward analysis, engagement and forward planning for primary care services in and around Witney through the locality group.

“Patient and stakeholder engagement and involvement is an integral part of this process and plans will be tested with patient participation groups, local councillors and the health overview and scrutiny committee.

“Meetings with public representatives have been held and it has been agreed that OCCG will hold two public events in the next six weeks.

"This will be followed up with another public event to present a summary of findings and possible solutions in November.

"It is proposed that the draft locality plan will be ready for publication – following engagement and input – in early December."

Last year, OCCG announced that Deer Park Medical Centre would close because nobody could be found to run it after Virgin Care’s contract expired.

Campaigners launched a passionate fight to save the centre, holding demonstrations and at one point applying for a judicial review against OCCG in the High Court, which ended unsuccessfully.

The announcement was referred to Mr Hunt in February following a unanimous vote by the Oxfordshire health overview and scrutiny committee, who deemed the decision a 'substantial change'. Mr Hunt then referred it to the IRP.