Scarborough Hospital Casualty A&E could be cut to part-time? |
Mick Pilling of the above campaign say's this is Damming News; already Bridlington Hospital's Minor Injuries Unit as been cut from September 2006 until now and is still not open; it should have opened 24/7 by June 2007.....The already our over-worked Ambulance service are working flat out to maintain Government response times; Ambulances that serve Bridlington come back from scarborough A&E with blues & twos Flashing. If we end up at YORK A&E patients are going to die or critically ill patients will suffer. This is the last straw; Scarborough NHS Trust already have been given a VOTE of NO Confidences by our group & Bridlington Town Council..... Every one as paid for NHS services reflected in Taxes Mick Pilling Hospital bosses are still in the dark over the size of this year's budget as negotiations involving primary care trusts continue, three months into the financial year. The hospital, whose budget last year was £94 million, could also still be forced to clear hospital debts of around £7 million. Leo McGrory, chairman of the Patient and Public Forum, said: "With further possible budget cuts from the primary care trust and from the Department of Health, it means that the total deficit on last year's budget could be in the region of £15 million. "The final figures have not been arrived at as yet and the trust does not even know themselves but £8 million is the kind of figure that has been discussed." Service cuts and the option of a part-time A & E department were raised at the board's meeting as money saving possibilities. Mr McGrory said: "In the forum's letter to health minister Rosie Winterton about the future of Scarborough Hospital, we asked if there was any hidden agenda and if there was more bad news on the way. It seems that there is. "Consultants fear that with a reduction of services there will be a shortage of appropriate nursing, surgical and trauma back up staff to operate an effective A & E section. We will then be left with a glorified minor injuries unit. "This is very serious. If people have to journey to York for emergency treatment it means that lives are being put at risk." Hospital secretary Chris Coombs said: "If the funding is cut by £8 million and we are forced to pay back the debts then the hospital trust board will have to sit down and make some serious decisions about the services that we provide. "Running A & E part-time is something we don't want to do. This was a problem that was brought up at the trust board and nothing has been signed and nothing has been agreed. "We are in the process of agreeing budgets with PCTs but in the meantime we intend to provide a full range of services to the health care community." Mick Pilling (Chairman) Taken from the Scarborough NEWS newspaper |
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