THE Business Case for Lisnaskea’s new Health Care Hub is “at an advanced stage”, according to Health and Social Care Board (HSCB) Commissioning Lead, Paul Cavanagh.

At the latest meeting for the Local Commissioning Group (LCG) he told members that more would be revealed on how the health care package would be delivered in the coming months.

At their August meeting it had been reported that the Business Case was to be completed by the end of the month and shared with members in September.

Acknowledging last week however, that this was not the case, Mr Cavanagh assured that work on the model was now being finalised.

Plans for a new Health Care Centre in Lisnaskea were originally muted over five years ago.

In 2008 it was anticipated that the Hub would cost well over £10 million, bringing together GP practices as well as a wide range of community, voluntary and private sector services including community nursing and some allied health professionals.

At the time the Lisnaskea Health and Care Centre had been prioritised by the Western Trust and Board as the “number one project” in the Primary and Community Care Infrastructure (PCCI) programme, encompassing the development of over 40 Health and Care Centres across Northern Ireland over the life of the programme.

But tightened purse strings meant the project was put on ice until the publication of Transforming Your Care last year, which placed emphasis on a shift from acute care to primary or community care.

A spokesperson for the HSCB told the Impartial Reporter this week: “The business case is progressing well but various approvals are still required before the business case is sent to the Department of Health for final approval. It is hoped that the procurement process could commence in 2014 with construction following planning approvals.”