HEALTH chiefs have unveiled their unwanted Christmas gift to patients in York and Selby - slashing the opening hours of York's Walk-in Centre.

From Christmas Eve, the centre will abandon its 7am to 10pm hours in favour of noon to 8pm - a reduction of 49 hours a week.

PCT chiefs claim the cuts are part of its work to develop emergency care services.

But bosses at York Hospital fear it will mean an influx of patients to Accident & Emergency, pushing their efforts to meet waiting time targets.

Specialist nurses have provided treatment and advice to people without an appointment since the centre opened in 2000.

A statement from Selby and York said the new hours will allow nursing staff to work more closely with GPs providing the emergency out-of-hours service.

Heather Rice, director of health and social care at Selby and York PCT, said: "We have to live within the resources we have, and the decision to do this has not been taken lightly.

"My high priority is to ensure that we provide a service to patients who are the most critical, particularly those who access services out of hours and those who might otherwise go to A&E. We want to use the resources we have to prioritise the afternoons, evenings and overnight, which is when we get the most acutely ill people who might otherwise access emergency services."

She said the patients who would most be affected were those who, before the walk-in centre opened, would ordinarily see their GPs.

She said the detail would be discussed further this week.

Mike Proctor, director of nursing for York Hospital, said the PCT had not consulted the hospital before the announcement.

"I will want to have discussions with the PCT to discuss the potential impact on A&E," he said. "As yet there has been no consultation with the hospital over the issue."

The new hours will be trialled over Christmas and the New Year.

David Geddes, the PCT's medical director, said: "Over the past few years the NHS has been developing a number of services to complement GP surgeries and hospital services, and the York Walk-in Centre is part of this.

"There are many ways people can access health services and advice, including the Walk-in Centre, phoning NHS Direct on 0845 46 47, or accessing NHS direct services via satellite digital TV.

"As we enter the winter months, we are currently looking at the ways we can improve services, particularly during the busy out of hours period when GP surgeries are closed.

"I am delighted that by altering the opening hours we will be able to increase the level of nursing support for the GP out-of-hours service. This provides us with an opportunity to develop a true multi-professional team approach to meeting the needs of those falling ill in the out-of-hours period.

"We have decided to trial these new hours over Christmas and New Year and will review the success of these as part of a longer-term look at how best to continue to deliver high quality health care services in this area.

"The out-of-hours emergency service operates from 6pm until 8am and all weekends and Bank Holidays. If anyone needs advice you should call your doctor's surgery to get the number for out of hours services."

The number for out of hours services is 0845 056 8060.

Updated: 09:31 Monday, December 19, 2005