Aiming to cut health costs

A UNION chief says proposals to merge hospitals across the south east will mean job cuts and a further “fragmentation” of health services in the borough.

Mickey Crouch, who is the Unison health spokesman for the south east, says the plans are driven solely by a need to save cash and will not benefit Bromley residents.

Under the proposals, hospital trusts and specialist services at the Princess Royal University Hospital, Farnborough, Queen Mary’s, Sidcup, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich and Lewisham Hospital could merge to meet new demands for financial and clinical improvements.

The plans, which have been in dicussion since last year, are in response to the Government’s policy of trying to deliver medical services closer to people’s homes.

This will mean in future, care trusts will be commissioning less care from hospitals.

Bosses of the four hospitals are currently putting together a raft of proposals, which, if approved by Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt, could go out to public consultation by the summer.

But Mr Crouch has dismissed the prospect of a public consultation as “lip service” and thinks the move spells bad news for the health of residents.

He said: “This is just another example of the fragmentation of what was Bromley’s health authority.

“We used to have a Bromley hospital and we don’t any more. Ten years ago there were three A&E departments in Bromley. Now we have one.

“This is not adequate for a borough of Bromley’s size and I expect more for London’s largest borough.

“If you fragment services under the umbrella of a merger, the implication is you lose more professional health care people that were in the service through job cuts.

“And all this is to save money because of previous mistakes.

“My first guess would be that a lot of senior staff will be the first to lose their jobs.

“From Unison’s perspective, this is not taking things forward. It is just a big smokescreen to save money.”

Although there is not yet any indication of how the plans will take shape and what it will specifically mean to services, the combined deficit of more than £50m for all four hospitals is a factor.

The suggestion is by merging specialities, the four hospitals between them could offer better specialist care.

In theory, this would make a wider range of treatments available in the area rather than at the big London hospitals.

A spokesman for the Princess Royal University Hospital said: “Bromley Hospitals, Queen Mary’s, Queen Elizabeth and Lewisham Hospitals have agreed that our organisations need to work collaboratively to develop proposals to redesign services, so that we can provide the best care and services to local people.

“These four Trusts are exploring whether two-way alliances between Bromley Hospitals and Queen Mary’s Sidcup Trust, and Queen Elizabeth and Lewisham Hospital , or a four-way alliance would best deliver the clinical and financial improvements needed.

“It is extremely unlikely that change on the scale needed will be able to be effected without organisational mergers across the sector.

“The four Trusts do not favour seeing any one of the hospitals close, and neither do the local Primary Care Trusts.

“The details of which services may or may not change have not yet been agreed.

“Bromley Hospitals clinicians will continue discussions with colleagues at the other three Trusts, and any proposals will be part of a formal consultation process that will take place later this year.”

Mr Crouch added: “The way things are now, a chief executive can focus and concentrate on his hospital.

“If there is a four-way merger, he would have to be very sharp to keep his eye on all four balls.

“I calculate that as a day-and-a-half in each hospital.

“I think these people are multi-tasking as much as they can already and a merger would just heap more work on people.

“Consultation is just lip-service. Exactly what is tabled originally is what will happen.

“They don’t budge an inch, the decisions have been made. The wagon is on the tracks and it is going one way only.”

Source : www.newsshopper.co.uk