THE secretary of an NHS campaign group has labelled a review into hospital services as ‘continuing the trend of running down local hospitals’.
The Hospital Services Review looked at how current services across the region are provided, and was commissioned by Health and Care Working Together in South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw.
A series of recommendations were published last week, including that seven accident and emergency departments in Barnsley and other areas of South Yorkshire should be kept open.
But it said hospitals needed to work more closely together, and that different hospitals could take the lead for each of the five clinical services reviewed.
In addition, the review identified challenges in sustaining children’s and maternity services. It called for more choice for women and recommends further work is carried out to consider more care in communities and midwife-led units, and further development of home birth services.
In children’s services, there’s a recommendation to expand services for children in the community and in short stay units. This would lead to shorter stays for children and less need for longer stay in-patient wards.
For children needing longer stays in hospital for more complex problems, it may be possible to provide this in fewer units and the report recommends further work be carried out to consider a small reduction in the number of inpatient paediatric units.
Tony Nuttall, secretary of Barnsley Save Our NHS Group, said: “The review is responding to government underfunding of the NHS and failure to plan the workforce properly by further reductions in local services. We note that paediatric units and possibly also maternity units are to be reduced, along with services for gastrointestinal bleeds at night.
“As is well known, hyperacute stroke services have already in effect been reduced. The proposal to reduce acute hospital beds across South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw from 5,178 to only 4,637 is completely unrealistic, especially as occupancy levels are already far too high. The review continues the trend towards the running down of local hospitals and concentration of services instead in regional centres.
“We condemn the government in the strongest terms for its failure to fund and plan the NHS properly and we will oppose any further reductions in local hospital services. The people of South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw have not been meaningfully involved so far in the review so far and must be before final decisions are made.”
