WORCESTER MP Robin Walker said plans to rely more heavily on multidisciplinary healthcare professionals across multiple sites will be “stretching things” and instead more for hospital expansion is desperately needed.

The Conservative Member of Parliament has promised to continue lobbying Westminster for more money to expand the existing hospitals in order to “deal with the growing population.”

While city Labour Parliamentary candidate Lynn Denham said the Worcestershire clinical commissioning groups “should be taking every opportunity” to seek additional funding for our “hard-pressed NHS.”

“Housing developers must be asked for a contribution to improving or expanding local health infrastructure,” she added.

Mr Walker said “significant expansion” to hospital capacity is needed “not just in primary care” and thinks this is realistic at the sites in Worcester, Redditch and Kidderminster.

Proposed developments, including the 2,500-home South Worcester Urban Extension near St Peter’s, mean the three CCGs are “continually assessing” ways forward, a spokesman said.

“Along with the NHS long-term plan vision, the CCGs are working towards further fully integrated health and care in order to deliver more care closer to home.

“This will involve developing multidisciplinary teams including GPs, pharmacists, district nurses and health professionals working across primary care and hospital sites.”

The spokesman said extra money will be made available “over the coming years” to support new service models and enhance existing services.

They said the hope is to enable people to be able to “stay at home” with more options, better support and improved joined up care.

Mr Walker said recent multi-million pound government funding “is helping to address some existing need but it needs to go further.”

“Worcestershire needs two A&Es – Worcester needs expanding and the Alex needs to stay open,” he said, adding expanding Malvern is “not realistic.”

Mrs Denham added: “We know that Worcestershire Acute NHS Trust has a £72m deficit, is short of beds and had to borrow money to build the bridge in Worcester.”