Future of inpatient bed unit at Bishop's Castle hospital could be made this week
A decision on the future of Bishop's Castle Hospital could be made this week, two-and-a-half years since the 16-bed inpatient unit closed.
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Inpatient beds at Bishops Castle Community Hospital (BCCH) were temporarily closed in October 2021 due to staffing shortages, which Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust (ShropCom) said "were impacting on safety and quality of care".
But following a protest from the Save Our Beds campaign, the trust began a 'targeted recruitment campaign' to recruit the additional members of staff required to safely reopen.
Hundreds of protesters marched through the town in August last year, and representatives from the campaign attended Shropcom's board meeting in Shrewsbury, where they handed over a petition with 2,561 signatures.
A series of recruitment events have been held by the trust over the last few months with a £3,000 recruitment incentive being offered to get people on board.
Last month, ShropCom bosses said that they were just "three whole-time equivalent registered nurses short of being a full establishment", but just two more members of staff would allow them to safely reopen.
ShropCom will discuss the future of the inpatient unit and the next steps required at their meeting, which is set for this Thursday, April 4.
