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Consultants: Why axe top-quality services?
Beatriz Ayala21/ 4/2006
CONSULTANTS at Rochdale Infirmary and Fairfield Hospital have warned of 'devastating' consequences if plans to scrap children's, maternity and neo-natal services go ahead.
Seventeen out of 21 consultant paediatricians and obstetricians at both hospitals signed a letter against the plans, describing the proposals as 'senseless' and 'unacceptable'.
In the letter, the consultants said plans to shut 'well-established' and 'good quality' services at the two hospitals and open a new children's and maternity unit at North Manchester General Hospital did not make sense.
They said: "This would not make the service any better for our children and their families; on the contrary, it would destroy the well-established, high quality service we have been providing for the population of these towns.
"This would also divert investment meant for the children and mothers of these towns towards the centre of Manchester, resulting in clustering of services.
"If the proposals are accepted then we feel it will have devastating consequences for the future of health service provision in Bury, Rochdale, Heywood and Rossendale."
Consultants agreed re-organising services was the right thing to do to provide good quality care for patients.
But they said a single paediatric and maternity unit providing excellent quality care for Rochdale and Bury residents was the way forward.
Copies of the letter were sent to health chiefs and MPs, including Rochdale MP Paul Rowen, Rochdale Primary Care Trust chief executive Trevor Purt and Pennine Acute Trust chief executive Chris Appleby.
The Making It Better consultation team also received a copy and Diane Davies, director, said: "This statement will be considered as a formal response to the consultation and will be analysed along with all the other responses we have received when the consultation period ends on Friday 12 May.
"We are pleased people have taken the time to respond and if someone puts forward an alternative option, we will look at that carefully as this is the purpose of a formal consultation."
A spokeswoman for Rochdale Primary Care Trust said: "Rochdale PCT can assure the clinicians their response will be taken very seriously and dealt with in the same manner that all the other staff and public feedback is being handled.
"These views will be passed onto the project team for inclusion in the independent analysis."
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I am one of the consultants who signed the letter. I work at Fairfield and live in Rochdale and I am very fond of both towns and its people. They deserve the best possible service.
We have Rochdale Infirmary and Fairfield hospitals within 4 miles and the time is right for us to combine these two hospitals and have a big single hospital which will serve people of Rochdale, Bury, Heywood and Rosendale Valley.
I sincerely request people of Bury and Rochdale to join us and ask for a single hospital which could provide good quality service.
6/05/2006 at 12:42