Speak out on Shropshire NHS plans, urges Welsh campaigner
A Mid Wales health campaigner has called on people to come together to keep A&E services in Shrewsbury.
Joy Jones, of the Newtown Health Forum, said people in Montgomeryshire need to speak out to ensure the service is not moved solely to Telford.
Mrs Jones said taking the service away from the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital in favour of the Princess Royal Hospital would have "disastrous" consequences for people in the Mid Wales region.
The option of moving the service to Telford is being reviewed under the NHS Future Fit programme, which is responsible for a shake-up of hospital services in the county.
But Mrs Jones said having A&E solely based in Telford could cost lives.
She said: "We need to get the message to the people of Montgomeryshire that things are really heating up now with our health provisions and if people don't stand up and start shouting it will be too late.
"Telford are shouting very loud at they want all the A&E provisions to be located there even though they have other choices of hospitals such as Wolverhampton not far from them.
"If the people of Montgomeryshire join together to become one loud voice maybe we will get heard.
"People can't leave it to others as it could be themselves that one say will need healthcare in an emergency.
"It's no good shouting and complaining once the move have been made and it has gone from Shrewsbury."
She added: "They are promising that both sites will have an urgent care unit but this doesn't appear to be much more than a glorified minor injuries unit.
"But saying that they will be a great addition to the plans for Future Fit as they will be placed in different locations around Shropshire – not just at the main hospitals.
"I see that Bishop's Castle is one of the opinions they are looking at for a unit, but this of little benefit to people in Newtown and surrounding area as the roads are not the easiest to drive and in bad weather they can become extremely dangerous."
A hospital board meeting will be held tomorrow at 2pm in the lecture theatre at Telford's Princess Royal Hosptial to discuss the Future Fit options.
