A DAY of action has been planned by Worcester Trades Union Council against potential healthcare cuts proposed by Worcestershire Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs).

Campaigners will gather outside the Guildhall on Saturday from 10.30am to 3.30pm to encourage residents to complete the CCGs' questionnaire about where NHS services could be reduced.

Passers by will be invited to debate the future of the healthcare services in Worcestershire, and can sign a petition to local MPs, the CCGs and the county council in a bid to prevent the cut backs.

Bryn Griffiths, secretary of Worcester Trades Union Council, said: "I think that the public should take part in the survey, but at the same time we think they should be aware that we have serious criticisms about the survey itself.

"If you look at the survey we challenge anybody to say they disagree with the things put forward because they are bland and they do not spell out the consequences.

"It is almost a pretence of public participation. We want the public to look at it and say: 'Do we agree?'"

In March, the NHS survey was launched, asking members of the public for their opinion on a range of ideas to help save money, including restricting access to knee and hip replacements, restricting access to physiotherapy for minor injuries and restricting access to IVF treatment.

This year the CCGs - Redditch and Bromsgrove, Wyre Forest and South Worcestershire - have already planned to make £25 million in "efficiency savings" from a combined budget of £717 million, however in the future further savings will need to be made.

The survey can be filled in online at southworcsccg.nhs.uk, but the deadline of Monday, May 30 is looming.

A spokesman on behalf of the three Worcestershire CCGs said: "Every year we are tasked with making efficiency savings through doing things differently or more efficiently, such as caring for more patients in the community rather than in acute settings, or reducing medicine waste.

"However every year it is becoming increasingly difficult to make these savings which is why we are asking patients their thoughts about whether we should consider restricting access to various treatments or prescriptions in the future.

"We worked with patient groups in designing this questionnaire to make it as accessible as possible and to try and make sure that the questions are fair and are easy to understand.

"No decisions or even formal proposals are being made at this stage. The results of this survey will inform future plans we make as healthcare commissioners and further engagement work will follow.

"We believe this is absolutely the right thing to do to make sure we are reacting to the views of our local population and having an open and honest discussion with them is the best way to achieve this."