Thame Day Centre stays, but hospital beds will go

THE Trust responsible for Thame Community Hospital, has given an unequivocal promise, in public, that it has no intention of stopping the Thame Day Centre from operating in the building – but the community hospital beds will go.

The assurance about the future of the Day Centre came from a spokesperson for its landlord, the Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, in response to a question from Owen Davies, during a Q&A session about the hospital’s future, at last night’s Thame Town Council meeting (14/02).

The Trust is planning a pilot scheme for later in the year, to bring more out-patient services to the hospital, and bring other health and care services together ‘to invest in more efficient ways to get the right services, rapidly, to get people up on their feet and independent more quickly’.

What about the beds?

Particularly, the eight beds currently on the ground floor of the hospital, will be removed to provide space for these additional services, including the Trust’s main priority, a ‘frailty assessment’ unit. It is hoped that this approach will prevent elderly and infirm people from having to go to hospital in the first place.

As well as an historic nervousness around the security of tenure of the Day Centre, the announcement of the pilot scheme has caused some disquiet among the public about the loss of beds in the hospital. These have more recently, not been used by the local community for rehabilitation but, as what Dr ken Burch, Chair of the hospital’s League of Friends, speaking at the meeting described as: “..a parking lot for people bed-blocking in other district hospitals.”

What if the pilot fails?

Dr Burch said that he appreciated the financial pressures Health Trusts were under these days, and accepted that the closure of the beds, though very regrettable, would probably mean that ‘the greater good for the greater number of people’ would result, but he wanted to know what would happen to the hospital afterwards, if the six month pilot failed.

He was assured by a Bucks Hospitals NHS Trust spokesperson that: “If the pilot fails, we will re-employ staff and re-instate the beds.” She added: “We genuinely mean this is a pilot! Clinical evidence shows that the frail do worse in bed. But, absolutely, if this doesn’t work, we will have to revert back to what we had before.”

“You are very brave,” concluded Dr Burch, “and I wish you luck.”

‘A positive future’

Dr Martin Thornton, a GP with the Trinity Surgery in Thame, said: “We are massively constrained financially, and must try different methods of care. Community beds serve such a small population and so we must try to provide the services that will bring the most benefit to Thame residents, and may be some from Haddenham etc. The local GPS would like to help shape it to what patients need. This will be the first time we shall be working together, with community help, to deliver a more integrated system.

“We must work as one team to deliver a much better system for our patients. Our job is to carve out a future in the most positive way we can.”

Public Consultation

Incidentally, patients and the public in Thame and surrounding villages are being encouraged to have their say in Oxfordshire’s ‘Big Health and Care Consultation’ about possible changes to some healthcare services.

A series of public events has started where NHS clinicians and senior leaders are meeting with local residents to hear their views on how proposed changes to Oxfordshire’s stroke services, use of beds in the county’s acute hospitals, maternity services, critical and planned care at the Horton General in Banbury may affect them.

The Thame event takes place on Tuesday, March 14, between 3pm and 5pm, at The Barns Centre.  To book a space call 01865 334638 or email cscsu.talkinghealth@nhs.net and for more information about the consultation go to http://www.oxonhealthcaretransformation.nhs.uk/