A health care one-stop shop is being proposed for east Oxford, offering out-of-hours cover for patients across the city.

The project would be set up in April, at St Bartholomew's Medical Centre, in Manzil Way, before eventually moving to a purpose-built centre on the same site.

The centre would house GPs and nurses, as well as social services care, a mental health team and a pharmacy to deal with urgent prescrip- tions.

Oxford City Primary Care Trust, which is responsible for community care in the city, said the scheme could cost less than £30,000 a year.

It would also help ease pressure on the John Radcliffe Hospital's casualty unit.

By 2005, the service could also be linked to the NHS Direct helpline.

Patients with an urgent need would be seen by appointment, during opening hours of 6.30pm and 8am on weekdays, and from midday on Saturday to 8am on Monday.

At first it would include GP and nursing care, but PCT managers want to expand it to include social services and mental health workers. Primary and community services director Sarah Breton said: "It will be linked to A&E and is a way of trying to get patients the most appropriate care.

"Most of the time they will be seen more quickly, more efficiently and more appropriately at the out-of-hours centre."

Managers want 90 per cent of doctors from the city's 29 practices to join the project, and pay an annual fee of £8,500 each to fund it.

At the moment, GPs either do their own night work, are members of an out-of-hours co-operative with other practices, or employ private firm Healthcall to do the work.

The PCT, which would manage the centre, has estimated that if 50 or more GPs sign up to the new scheme, their fees should cover its costs. At most, another £27,000 a year would be needed.