New CT scanner for Princess Royal Hospital welcomed by Telford council bosses

The scanner is part of a £7 million investment in radiology equipment by The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH), which runs PRH and Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.

It is expected to go live in December.

Councillor Andy Burford, Telford & Wrekin Council’s cabinet member for health, said: “I am delighted at this long promised investment into our hospital which we have been pushing for a long time.

"I am pleased that SaTH has made good on its commitments.

"The current scanner in Telford is prone to failure which means patients have to go to Shrewsbury.

“We have been working very closely with SaTH on practical measures to help PRH and, in turn, our population served by it.

"Such work includes the continuing refurbishment of accommodation on the hospital’s grounds to help recruit more junior and middle grade doctors.

“We and the hospital trust are doing what we can, yet the future of our hospital still hangs in the balance."

Future Fit

Telford & Wrekin Council has called on Health Secretary Matt Hancock to review the Future Fit decision, which would see a single A&E for the county based in Shrewsbury and PRH becoming the site for planned care.

Mr Hancock says he is still 'carefully considering all the evidence available' after receiving recommendations from a panel that interviewed health bosses, clinicians, council officials and other interested groups in July.

But today, fresh calls were made by Councillor Burford for Mr Hancock to reach a decision quickly.

He said: "We earlier formally referred plans to reconfigure hospital services, known as Future Fit to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care.

"The plans threaten Telford’s 24/7 A&E and consultant-led women and children’s centre.

“Matt Hancock has all the evidence he needs to make a decision on the matter and we again call on him to make that decision and end the uncertainty.”

The council believes that Future Fit is not in the best interests of patients and says the consultation with the joint scrutiny committee was ‘inadequate’.

However, the scheme has been hailed by health bosses who say Future Fit will lead to better conditions, top facilities and will make it easier to recruit the staff needed, reducing the need for agency workers.