The return of a treatment room to Bridge of Weir – now based in a converted bus – is expected to take place this week in a move dubbed a “step in the right direction”.
The mobile clinic is set to go live within the grounds of the Cargill Hall from Thursday and will be available for two half-days per week.
The facility will offer care services, such as dressings, wound management and specific injections, after the recent removal of a treatment room from Strathgryffe Medical Practice.
Councillor James MacLaren, Conservative representative for Bishopton, Bridge of Weir and Langbank, said: “Patients were faced with travelling to Linwood instead but Bridge of Weir doesn’t have a good transport network and there are people who find it difficult to stand for too long at a bus stop.
“Using public transport for them isn’t always easy and a lot of them would have to use a taxi to get to Linwood and back.
“A mobile unit could be a good answer to this. If it’s going to work and run successfully and on time, it could be a good answer to the problem.
“I think it’s a step in the right direction.”
The bus – a former First Glasgow single-decker – has been fitted with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) livery and contains a clinical area, waiting area, kitchen and communal area for staff.
It’s understood that it will be located next to the hall in Lintwhite Crescent on Monday and Thursday mornings on an appointment basis. This followed an initial testing period on site in recent weeks.
Rajeeb Rashid, consultant paediatric diabetologist at NHSGGC, is one of the team who designed and commissioned the clinic.
He said last month: “The bus allows us to take the care right to our patients and that’s a huge win for everybody.
“For patients and families it helps to remove barriers to care, in turn reducing health inequalities, while for NHSGGC it reduces the number of non-attendances at appointments and allows us to see more patients more cost-effectively.”
Monitoring will take place in the coming months to make sure staff and patient feedback is taken on board.
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