WEE COUNTY families will find it more difficult to access out of hours healthcare this summer, following changes to weekend opening times.

Medical chiefs say there have been “significant challenges” in providing sufficient out-of-hours medical cover over the last few months in Clackmannanshire and across the region.

Acknowledging the issue, NHS Forth Valley has announced a number of temporary changes to the way the services are provided across the area until the end of September.

From the week beginning Monday, July 24, there will be no out-of-hours services at the Clackmannanshire Community Health Centre during the weekends or on public holidays.

Instead, patients who wish to access services will either be directed to Stirling Community Hospital or Forth Valley Royal in Larbert – with the latter being the only place available past midnight.

Residents who need access to GP advice, treatment or urgent healthcare out-of-hours have to seek an appointment through NHS 24. Some had already been directed outside Clacks before the move, depending on availability.

Andrew Murray, medical director at the health board, said: “Over the last few months, like many other parts of Scotland, we have experienced significant challenges in filling our GP out-of-hours rotas.

“These problems were becoming more frequent and while, we have tried to put in place contingency arrangements, we knew that it would become increasingly difficult to adequately staff our out-of-hours centres over the summer holiday period.”

Mr Murray added that a number of GPs had raised concerns about working in isolation when shifts have not been filled and expressed a preference to work alongside other colleagues on a single site “to help manage demand more effectively”.

The director continued: “We have therefore taken the decision to move from two centres to one centre after midnight and from three centres to two centres at the weekend on a temporary basis.”

NHS Forth Valley argued this approach will make sure services are maintained while more staff are being recruited.

And to tackle the issue on the long run, the health board is launching a review of the service in partnership with the Integration Joint Board.

There are plans to gather feedback, ideas and suggestions from local service users, carers and a range of healthcare professionals.

Clackmannanshire North representative Councillor Dave Clark, leader of the Labour opposition, blamed the government in power.

He said: “SNP strategies are clearly not working in the NHS.

"They are not working in education and I have discovered in the last few months that the policies handed down from the SNP government at Holyrood to local government are positively toxic. They have had their day."

Yesterday, Wednesday July 5, independent halth charity the Nuffield Trust published a report into how healthcare in Scotland is different, where its approach seems to solve problems being faced elsewhere in the UK and whether that approach could be transplanted.

Responding, SNP council leader Cllr Les Sharp said: “I appreciate that there are going to be some very short term changes, but it really is due to holiday cover.

“If you look at an independent body like the Nuffield Trust – SNP policies in Scotland regarding the NHS are working.”

One of the key points in the report states the Scottish NHS benefted from a continuous focus on quality improvement over many years amonst other measures, adding: “there is much for the other countries of the UK to learn from this”.

Cllr Sharp added: “Maybe England should take note; maybe some of our Labour councillors should take note rather than just blast with the first thing that comes out the mouth.”

The independent report does highlight, however, that like elsewhere in the UK, there has been a struggle to move care out of hospital while the Scottish NHS also “faces a serious financial predicament” with the need for savings “at least as great as for other UK countries”.

MSP Keith Brown said: "I share the concerns of many local people over NHS Forth Valley's plans to centralise weekend out of hours GP services until midnight at Stirling and Larbert and from midnight, only at Larbert.

"I have raised these concerns with the interim chief executive and requested a meeting to discuss the matter further."