ACTION group members say they are being deprived of "modern GP services" while they wait for health board officials to examine their case for a new doctor's surgery in Hanmer village.

Hanmer Surgery Action Group says the current surgery based in a 1960s bungalow in Sandy Lane is not fit for purpose and the lack of facilities have left Dr Kieran Redman with an uphill battle providing GP services to a largely elderly population in the village and surrounding areas near Penley.

They claim some wheel-chair bound patients have had to be treated in the porch because of poor access, while they say the practice lacks consulting space and patient privacy is being compromised.

Proposals for a new development nearby would, they say, allow additional services to be provided in a rural community where public transport is limited.

Betsi Cadwaladr Health Board handed the surgery its lowest rating of 5 in a recent survey, but Barbara Weeks, from the action group, says an invitation to the health board's new chairman Mark Polin and chief executive Gary Docherty to view the problems in September appeared to be ignored.

The action group handed a petition into the health board earlier this year and one of its members, Barbara Weeks, from Hanmer, said: "The premises are too small to accommodate all the facilities you would expect in a modern GP surgery. There is one consulting room and recently there was an incident where an ambulance was needed for a patient but because it took 30 minutes to get here there was nowhere to put all the other patients that were waiting to see the doctor.

"It is just very cramped. The treatment room doesn't have any heating in it and the office staff work next to a kitchen sink. It really is the case that we are suffering from a rural deprivation of our medical services."

Dr Redman, who is the practice's only GP, is understood to be prepared to help finance a new surgery by taking out a loan. But he would require revenue funding from the health board to reimburse the costs of his loan repayments - although the size and age of the current building means Hanmer qualifies for a lower cash injection.

The planned new premises would include two consulting rooms, a treatment room as well as a room for nurse and health visitors along with accessible toilets and improved parking for staff and patients.

Campaigners say the cost of bringing the existing surgery up to standard is not economic and cite Welsh Government Health and Social Care Secretary Vaughan Gething's stated aim that "People in the 21st Century expect to be treated in modern, advanced healthcare centres that deliver a wide range of services all under one roof".

Ms Weeks added: "The major stumbling block is that while the health board acknowledges the need for new premises they are currently refusing to increase its 'notional rent' calculated on the size and condition of the premises and paid on a per patient basis. As Hanmer Surgery premises are small and old this is very low, almost half that on average for Wrexham, so any form of refurbishment would mean an increase in costs for the health board."

Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board says it is waiting for the practice to submit revised plans that meet funding criteria set by the Welsh Government.

The board's East Area Medical Director Gareth Bowdler said: "We have been in regular contact with the patient participation group from Hanmer Surgery. GP practices are built based on a strict funding formula set by Welsh Government which is based on the list size of the practice. While the cost of the surgery’s initial proposal exceeded this, we await its revised plans and we are open to continuing to work with the practice to find a modern and affordable solution for the patients of this practice.”

* Anyone wishing to discuss the campaign for a new surgery in Hanmer can contact Barbara Weeks on 01948 830324 or email hspag2018@googlemail.com