Shropshire Star

Future Fit: Time to enforce one A&E, say Shropshire medics

Staff at Shropshire's two main hospitals have spoken out in favour of a single A&E department for the county.

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The trust which controls Shropshire's two main hospitals today revealed its preferred site for a new emergency centre would be Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.

It has released a document in which officials are quoted giving their support for the plans, saying it would be "dangerous" if no changes were made.

Mark Cheetham, consultant general and colorectal surgeon, said: "The easiest thing in the world would be to do nothing. That would be dangerous.

"These plans are about ensuring patients now and in the future have the best access to the best medical staff in the best place when they need it, and I fully support that move."

Dr Kevin Eardley, renal consultant and unscheduled care group medical director, said: "It's been suggested that we should do nothing and keep the status quo, but we've been clear that doing nothing is not an option.

"We need to make changes to our hospitals to improve standards and waiting times for patient care and also improve the experiences they have. We also need to ensure the sustainability of our hospital services for the next 20 years and more.

"These changes need to happen to ensure we keep health services local and in the county.

"We have spent a long time thinking through, developing and refining our model.

"Doctors, nurses, therapists and other clinical staff from our hospitals and the community have developed the proposed model – a single emergency centre to treat life and limb threatening conditions, supported by A&E services at both hospitals."

Under the Future Fit plans, currently stalled because NHS bosses cannot agree, a new emergency care centre would be based at Shrewsbury Hospital, with the majority of planned surgery taking place at Telford's Princess Royal Hospital.

The PRH would also maintain a 24-hour urgent care centre, along with a similar service at RSH.

In a newsletter to staff, Dodiy Herman, A&E consultant, said the current way the two hospitals are run is 'unsustainable'.

He said: "We are working at full capacity nearly every day but with a modern emergency centre it would make the way we work much more efficient and will attract more consultants.

"We are lucky at the moment because my colleagues are very dedicated and work a huge amount of overtime, but it simply isn't sustainable."

Clare Walsgrove, A&E matron, added: "Patients are already having to travel out of the county, to hospitals in Stoke and Wolverhampton, for trauma cases such as heart attacks, and unless we move forward with these proposals we could end up losing more services from our hospitals.

"The new emergency centre, supported by two new 24-hour centres that provide A&E services, will help us keep our trauma unit status."

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