ANGRY campaigners are threatening to hold a further protest after it emerged that an East Coast minor injuries unit (MIU) is to start closing overnight. Mick Pilling, of the Save/Support Bridlington Hospital Campaign Group, said he was appalled by the lack of consultation with townspeople by the Scarborough and North East Yorkshire NHS Trust.
From September 4, the unit will close overnight from 9pm to 9am.

The trust, which is £6.9m in the red, says the service will have to close "temporarily" because of staff sickness.
But Mr Pilling said it was the third time the trust had reduced hours in as many years.

He said: "They blamed the closure last time on staff shortages.

"There is a complete overtime ban at Bridlington Hospital and staff who leave are not being replaced."
He added: "This is the worst time of year for Bridlington when every caravan site is open and the town is buzzing – we have something like 100,000 people coming into Bridlington. We are also coming into winter when the coast road becomes a nightmare.

"It is absolutely diabolical. Full consultation was promised at past meetings, but the trust has failed yet again."
Bridlington Mayor Councillor Leslie Taylor said it was another blow for the town following the recent axing of the Sunday prescription service by the Yorkshire Wolds and Coast Primary Care Trust.

He said: "The trust is always using the excuse that there isn't staff. In my opinion the trust is actually trying to close the hospital down altogether to save money – that's the top and bottom of it."

Scarborough and North East Yorkshire NHS Trust said staff sickness had led to there being too few of the highly-trained nurses needed to operate the unit 24 hours per day.

From September 4, anyone requiring treatment overnight should contact their out-of-hours GP service, or in an emergency uUse the accident and emergency department at Scarborough.

Trust divisional director Don Bridgmount said: "As members of the public will have heard before, it has always been difficult for us to recruit the number of specially trained nurses necessary to maintain a full 24-hours-a-day service at Bridlington.

"The unit has previously been closed twice in the last three years for the very same reason.
"However, the overnight closure should have little impact on patient care, as the number of patients using the MIU in the night time period is very small indeed, averaging just two, and the A&E facility at Scarborough Hospital will still be available on a 24-hour basis to take the more serious cases.

"There is no doubt we need to consider the MIU overnight services for the longer term but this is currently a temporary arrangement and if any permanent changes needed to be made to the MIU service these will be subject to consultation."
Local GP's and the ambulance service had been informed.

Last month concerns over the running of the trust prompted an inquiry into its management.

Top managers from other NHS trusts in Yorkshire are filling the roles of chief executive Alison Guy and finance director Bernard Flynn and conducting the inquiry, following renewed concerns expressed by the Audit Commission, believed to relate to draft accounts for 2005-6.

MEDIA INFORMATION - Reply from Scarborough and North East Yorkshire Healthcare NHS Trust

Changes to opening hours of minor injuries unit at Bridlington

The nurse-led Minor Injuries Unit (MIU) at Bridlington Hospital is to temporarily close overnight due to staff sickness. Staff sickness has resulted in there being too few of the highly trained nurses needed to man the unit 24 hours per day.

Changes will take effect from Monday 4 th September. After this, opening hours will be from 9am to 9pm until further notice. Anyone requiring treatment outside of these hours should contact their out-of-hours GP service, or in an emergency use the Accident and Emergency Department at Scarborough .

Said Trust Divisional Director Don Bridgmount, “As members of the public will have heard before, it has always been difficult for us to recruit the number of specially trained nurses necessary to maintain a full 24 hours per day service at Bridlington. The unit has previously been closed twice in the last three years for the very same reason.

“However, the overnight closure should have little impact on patient care, as the number of patients using the MIU in the night time period is very small indeed, averaging just two, and the A&E facility at Scarborough Hospital will still be available on a 24 hour basis to take the more serious cases. There is no doubt we need to consider the MIU overnight services for the longer term but this is currently a temporary arrangement and if any permanent changes needed to be made to the MIU service these will be subject to consultation.”

Local GPs and the ambulance service have been informed of this change.

- ENDS –