Concerns over transport to new community medical hubs in Bucks have once again been raised as health bosses work on plans to roll the scheme out across the county.

Bucks County Council’s health and social care select committee were updated this week on the controversial health hub scheme at Marlow and Thame community hospitals – which could later expand to other locations across the county.

Last year Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust (BHT) invested £1 million into creating the hubs at Marlow Hospital in Victoria Road and Thame Community Hospital in East Street in a bid to bring care closer to people’s homes.

The scheme has proved controversial after it was revealed the inpatient beds at the hospitals would not be used during the pilot – and now the beds have been scrapped altogether.

The the scheme has been confirmed to run for another two years – and health bossed were quizzed on plans during Tuesday’s meeting.

Chief executive of health watchdog, Healthwatch Bucks, Thalia Jervis, asked if patients’ early concerns over a lack of transport to the hubs has been addressed, and called for more information on travel options.

She said: “It would just be interesting to have a bit more detail around whether there had been any more feedback on transport on the two existing hubs from your perspective and also how that planning is going to work going forward to make sure that transport is in mind.

“It is one of the top things we hear about.”

A report states regular meetings are held with South Central Ambulance Service, which provides the patient transport service, to monitor performance.

Chief nurse and director of patient care standards at BHT, Carolyn Morrice, admitted transport provision continues to be a challenge, however said volunteers in Marlow and Thame have been helping with patients’ travel arrangements.

She added: “Looking broadly across the county about how we improve those models of care, that would be a large work stream in itself to understand how we can work with all colleagues across health and social care to see what we could do differently in terms of transport.

“We also need to look at how we use telemedicine or technology whereby we can still link into the hub but not necessarily travel.”

New services at the hubs include outpatient clinics, such as orthopaedics, falls and bones, general surgery and chemotherapy, as well as a community assessment and treatment service.

Plans are also being developed to roll hubs out across the county in Wycombe, Aylesbury and Buckingham – which will be determined by “population needs and transport links”.