Closure of Shrewsbury town centre blood service 'may be illegal'
A leading health campaigner claims that Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Health Trust may have acted illegally in closing the blood collection service in Shrewsbury.
Gill George, chair of Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Save our NHS, has written to SaTH chief executive Simon Wright asking why a consultation was not carried out into the closure of the phlebotomy service, held at Princess House in the town, and the views of service users not sought.
She said: "We think closing it may have been against the law.
"If SaTH commits to re-opening the service, brilliant. If not, we may have to look at a legal route."
SaTH announced on April 18 that the service, which was held at Princess House and served more than 300 patients a week, would close on April 26.
In her letter, which Mr Wright received last week, Ms George said: "It is a very great shame that a service used by so many people is apparently ending due to a disagreement about rent between two local NHS organisations.
"The impact will also be a differential one depending on other characteristics of patients. I am thinking here of the protected characteristics defined by the Equality Act 2010, and in particular of age, disability, and pregnancy and maternity.
"A journey that is straightforward for a healthy young adult may present very real difficulties for a frail elderly person, for example.
"I understand that an unexpected loss of accommodation may cause a reluctant short-term closure of a service.
"There is nothing to suggest that the closure is only temporary. The news release states ‘we remain keen to work with healthcare partners, should an alternative location become available in the future’ – but this falls short of a commitment to reopen the service, or a timescale for doing so.
"The facilities required for a phlebotomy service will not be particularly complex, and it seems unlikely that no alternatives exist in central Shrewsbury.
Ms George has put the following questions to Mr Wright:
Was the assistance of the CCG, the local STP Board or NHS Improvement sought to reach an agreement on costs with the Community Trust?
Is there a clear intention to reopen the phlebotomy service in central Shrewsbury? If so, what is the intended timescale for re-opening, and what active steps are being taken by SaTH to locate alternative premises?
Was consideration given to public consultation on this service change, and why were public consultation or engagement not thought necessary?
Did consultation take place with Daniel Kawczynski as local MP, and with the Health and Adult Social Care Scrutiny Committee of Shropshire Council?
What consideration was given to the public sector equality duty, and did SaTH carry out an Equality Impact Assessment prior to deciding on the closure of the service?
Will SaTH make publicly available the documentary evidence that it has complied with its public sector equality duty on this matter?
Ms George added: "It is a real shame that the intended closure of the service on April 26 was made public only on April 18. The service closure – together with the considerable number of patients affected – adds a level of urgency to this situation."
