PATIENTS who use the Mineral Water Hospital in Bath are being asked to comment on plans to move its rheumatology and therapies services to the main Royal United Hospital's Combe Park site.

Although the services will not move until 2018, the RUH Trust wants to gather feedback now, as plans for the new centre start to take shape.

The purpose built centre will include a hydrotherapy pool, a state of the art gym, group rooms and improved waiting facilities.

Dr Raj Sengupta, consultant rheumatologist and lead for the ankylosing spondylitis (AS) service said: “Patients who use these services will continue to be seen and treated by the same teams, only the location will change. We’re all fond of the Mineral Hospital building, but we’ve known for some time that to ensure the future of the Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases’ (RNHRD) and its highly regarded services, we need to move out of the Min.”

The Trust wants to hear from patients, carers, healthcare partners and anyone who has an interest in the RNHRD’s rheumatology and therapies services to help their planning, to ensure that they continue to provide the best services for current and future patients.

As part of the process, they will be holding an informal event on Thursday (Oct 20) from 9.30am-4.30pm at Bath Racecourse. In the morning session, there will be the opportunity to meet with clinicians, to hear more about the new RNHRD and Therapies Centre while in the afternoon, people will have the opportunity to view the latest designs.

To attend, contact: jessica.white2@nhs.net or call 01225 824738. More information, and a feedback survey is available online: www.ruh.nhs.uk/about/service_relocations.