Health watchdog backs Community Hospital campaigners
CAMPAIGNERS fighting to save changes to medical cover at Thame hospital, have won an important victory.
The campaign by the Leagues of Friends and local GPs from the community hospitals in Thame, Buckingham and Marlow won the day on Friday, (11/09/09) when the Overview and Scrutiny Committee of Buckinghamshire County Council ruled unanimously that the changes to medical cover proposed by the Primary Care Trusts were: “a significant change in service,” which must be subjected to public consultation first.
ANGRY PROTEST
Twenty campaigners from the League of Friends of Thame Community Hospital organised a bus to take them to the committee meeting in Wycombe where they were joined by angry protesters and GPs from Buckingham and Marlow community hospitals.
The meeting was addressed by Mr Richard Mills from the PCT defending the changes, and by Dr Duncan Keeley from the Rycote Practice, Thame, Sarah Taylor from the League of Friends of Thame Hospital and members of the Leagues of Friends of Buckingham and Marlow hospitals.
REDUCED SERVICE FOR ELDERLY PEOPLE
Dr Keeley spoke on behalf of the doctors of all the three hospitals. He called on the committee to reject the PCTs proposed changes to medical cover for the hospitals, arguing that they represented a significant reduction in both the quality and quantity of services provided for elderly people.
A copy of the petition calling on the PCT to allow the local practices to provide medical care at Thame ? which now carries 3,300 signatures ? was presented to the Committee.
KEEP LOCAL DOCTORS RUNNING LOCAL HOSPITALS
After the meeting Dr Keeley said: “This vote is a resounding endorsement by the County Council of our campaign to keep local doctors running local hospitals. The Primary Care Trust should now return responsibility for medical cover at Thame Hospital to the Rycote and Wellington House practices. We are sure that the private company who have taken over at the hospital will respect the legal requirement for public consultation and agree to temporarily suspend their contract in respect of Thame Hospital while the necessary consultation takes place.”
RE-OPEN CLOSED BEDS
He added: “There need be no financial objection to this, since we have suggested ways in which any difference in cost to the PCT can be made up. We very much hope that our taking back the responsibility for medical care at the hospital will allow the PCT to re-open the four beds at the hospital which they have just closed, thus allowing Thame Hospital to play its full part in preventing unnecessary admissions to Stoke Mandeville and the John Radcliffe hospitals.
“We very much hope that the PCT will agree to this, but meanwhile we keep up the fight. We are still collecting signatures to our petition.”
Dr Richard Harrington and Dr Duncan Keeley will be attending a Board Meeting of the Primary Care Trust on September 29, to put their case again to the PCT.
A group is to be set up by the PCT and the Overview and Scrutiny Committee to plan the way forward for medical cover for the community hospitals.
POINTS MADE BY GPS TO THE COMMITTEE
The resentation made by local general practices who wish to retain responsibility for medical over of their local community hospitals (Dr.Duncan Keeley, Dr Christopher North and Dr Jonathon Pryse, on behalf of practices in Thame, Marlow and Buckingham, made the following points:
1. The PCT is, by its changes in medical cover for the community hospitals substantially changing both the quality and the quantity of service to elderly patients provided by these hospitals.
2. There has been no public consultation about these changes. This ignores legal and Department of Health requirements and the principles for good commissioning set out in Lord Darzi?s NHS Next Stage Review.
3. Under new PCT arrangements with a large private company medical cover at the community hospitals is to be reduced from 30-40 hours per week to 4 hours per week in Thame, from 20 hours per week to 5 hours per week in Buckingham, and from 12 to 4 hours per week in Marlow.
4. The PCT Chief Executive, at a recent board meeting of the PCT, was unable to say where the company which has been given the contract is based. Our practices with large medical teams are situated right next to the hospitals that we have always taken pride in looking after.
5. These changes have been introduced without any medical professional advice and without any risk analysis being undertaken.
6. It is only because none of us could believe that the PCT could contemplate such drastic reductions in service that we have not come earlier to the Committee with our concerns.
7. The PCT has reduced the intended budget for medical cover for the Community hospitals from
