In last week's Throne Speech, Government announced plans to abolish the Medical Centre and ship patients out to private practices.

"The Government will move to abolish the so-called 'Indigent Care Clinic' at the hospital," it declared.

"Bermudians lacking financial means will no longer have their dignity undermined as a prerequisite to assessing basic and necessary healthcare."

No timeframe for the shutdown was given.

But yesterday one healthcare source said the services provided by the centre were first-rate, and that patients could suffer if they were forced to go to private practices.

"The patients that are coming in are concerned and wondering when it's going to close," the source, who asked not to be named, said.

"All the facilities that they need such as X-rays and the pharmacy are there under one roof. It's accessible, they can get supplies there, there's a team of doctors and support staff on hand.

"But there are worries that, if they do have to go to a private practice, the standard of care might fall. For example, some private doctors' offices don't have wheelchair access or elevators, and they might not be able to spend as much time with their physician.

"At the clinic, doctors can spend about half-an-hour with a patient. Will they get the same attention with a private practice?"

"So why is Government shutting it down? It's just going to be very inconvenient."

The source added that the Project Action charity provided an excellent service ferrying patients who could not afford their own transport to the clinic.

And they pointed out that thousands of taxpayer dollars had been spent improving facilities at the centre in recent years.

Last night Shadow Health Minister Louise Jackson also expressed concern that the facility would be scrapped.

She agreed that the centre had been rightly criticised in the past for providing a low level of service, but that had been completely changed around in recent years.

"Clearly somebody hasn't done their homework on this," she said.

"The powers that be haven't been down there, or consulted with the patients and staff.

"That clinic has not always been what it should have been but to give credit where it's due, a past Minister changed all that. For example, it used to be operational on just two days a week but now it's open for business on five days a week.

"It's really come a long way and now offers services that many patients believe are essential.

"At one point we did agree that it needed to be closed or sorted out but the fact is the problems that were there have been remedied. They now have all the professional medical workers on hand, they can get their free prescriptions and the facilities are beautifully appointed.

"And as far as I can see, clients don't feel at all humbled. The clinic is no different from other sections of the hospital and they are treated by the same doctors.

"This type of clinic exists in just about every country in the world and I think that the people who use it are extremely grateful for it and certainly not ashamed to use it.

Mrs. Jackson said she had spoken to a number of the clinic's customers who expressed concern at the prospect of having to visit a private surgery for treatment.

"They don't have to wait at the clinic for an appointment, they are seen pretty much straight away," she said.

"But there's a perception that that won't happen with private practices ? sometimes you have to wait weeks to see a doctor here. I think the whole idea to abolish it needs to be revisited."

The Premier's press secretary was informed by the of patient concerns about the clinic yesterday afternoon. No response was received by press time last night.