Campaigners to meet Health Secretary Andrew Lansley

8:40am Friday 1st June 2012 in Health By Lawrence Dunhill

Campaigners to meet Health Secretary Campaigners to meet Health Secretary

CAMPAIGNERS are set to meet Health Secretary Andrew Lansley this month to raise concerns about the imminent loss of specialist services at Wycombe Hospital.

Members of the cross-party Save Our Hospital Services campaign group, chaired by Bucks Free Press editor Steve Cohen, will travel to Whitehall on June 13.

Though the hospital changes have now been signed off by the NHS Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Cluster, they are still to be agreed by Bucks County Council.

The council's Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee has the power to refer the final decision to Mr Lansley. For background see related links.

The changes at a glance:

• Inpatient wards for diabetes, respiratory, gastroenterology and medicine for older people are transferred to Stoke Mandeville. Outpatients for these services still go to Wycombe Hospital, which gets a new day assessment unit and ‘step-down’ ward for elderly patients.

• The Emergency Medical Centre at Wycombe is downgraded to a Minor Injuries and Illnesses Unit. About 300 emergency medical patients per week taken by ambulance to Stoke Mandeville or Wexham Park hospitals instead.

• Wycombe keeps critical care and specialist services for stroke and heart attack patients. Its breast care service also becomes a specialist unit.

• Complex vascular surgery moves to Oxford, affecting about 250 patients per year, except carotid surgery [to prevent strokes] which stays in Wycombe.

• Wycombe Hospital will see about 7,600 fewer people per year - a reduction of about three per cent. The key drivers for change are both financial and clinical.

Related links

Comments (2)

11:56am Fri 1 Jun 12

barry hardwood says...

People should protest more against these issues that affect the community. It is good that some people carry the fight but too many sit back and watch. In fairness, I am one of them. Not enough Chiefs & too many Indians. Some real disruption should be organised to make these people realise the mistake they are making.
People should protest more against these issues that affect the community. It is good that some people carry the fight but too many sit back and watch. In fairness, I am one of them. Not enough Chiefs & too many Indians. Some real disruption should be organised to make these people realise the mistake they are making. barry hardwood

1:28pm Fri 1 Jun 12

QualityCare4all says...

Good luck in talking with Andrew Lansley. he will pass the bucks, saying its a local decision to meet local needs. You would be better off asking him how the NHS reforms will benefit patients. Or asking him why Bucks will only get £15 per head to manage commissioning while Oxfordshire gets £30 per head.
PS these changes have been consulted on for the last 5-10 years and so you should have raised your concerns more loudly then!

Therer are many ways to have your say: here, but you should also attend hospital and PCT board meetings and ask for explanations, you should join your local GP surgery patient participation group or form one, you should become a member of the Foundation Trust, you should join the Local Involvement Network and from April 1st 2013 join Buckinghamshire Local Healthwatch.
Good luck in talking with Andrew Lansley. he will pass the bucks, saying its a local decision to meet local needs. You would be better off asking him how the NHS reforms will benefit patients. Or asking him why Bucks will only get £15 per head to manage commissioning while Oxfordshire gets £30 per head. PS these changes have been consulted on for the last 5-10 years and so you should have raised your concerns more loudly then! Therer are many ways to have your say: here, but you should also attend hospital and PCT board meetings and ask for explanations, you should join your local GP surgery patient participation group or form one, you should become a member of the Foundation Trust, you should join the Local Involvement Network and from April 1st 2013 join Buckinghamshire Local Healthwatch. QualityCare4all

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