Courage at last (From Gazette Series)

Courage at last

THE Save Frenchay Hospital Group (SFHG) is delighted that the South Gloucestershire Council's Health Scrutiny Subcommittee has had the courage to make the decision to refer the downgrading of Frenchay Hospital to the Secretary of State for Health to ask her to refer it on to the IndependentReconfiguration Panel.

We also are objecting on the following grounds: 1 Population - insufficient account has been taken of high projected population growth and increase in the elderly population for S Glos 2 Transport and access - the decision to downgrade Frenchay was made before a full assessment of the traffic implications has been carried out 3 There was structural bias in the configuration of the decision-making committees 4 Inadequate staff/workforce consultation 5 Faulty consultation process

These contentions are backed by sound evidence which can be produced to the Secretary of State if required or presented to the IRP if we are given the opportunity to do so.

This protest will not cause any delay as the deadline is now June 2006. We have 11 months and a review by the Independent Reconfiguration Panel will only take 12 weeks of that time. Nothing will be lost by referring this matter for review; for the sake of patients and the public who will be treated at the acute hospital for the next 50 or so years it is important to get this right and to take a little extra time to do so.

If the Bristol Hospital Services Plan is sound then it has nothing to fear from independent scrutiny. If not then better to find out now rather than make a £300m mistake!!

The IRP was set up by the Government for just such a case as this where there are strong arguments on a number of different aspects of the decision.

As will be seen from our petition now standing at 30,000 and still rising, there is widespread public disquiet about the process and its outcome. The public of South Glos and East Bristol need to have confidence that proper conclusions are reached following a robust independent investigation.

We have urged the Secretary of State not to hesitate in referring the issue of the siting of the acute hospital to the IRP in order that an independent and unbiased analysis of the facts can at last take place.

Lesley Fudge Secretary Save Frenchay Hospital Group