'We must keep an A&E in our town': Future Fit consultation starts in Telford
The people of Telford spoke out about the potential loss of their A&E as the Future Fit consultation kicked off with its first public exhibition.
The consultation on the future of Shropshire’s health services, which one town mayor called the county’s “most important ever”, finally got underway with a public event in Southwater attracting dozens of respondents.
Members of the public packed out Meeting Point House on the first day of public consultation, while medical professionals spoke of their relief that the process had finally started.
The exhibition is to be followed by another in Shrewsbury today, then by six more in areas including Newtown, Ludlow, Bridgnorth and Market Drayton.
Visitors to the exhibition were able to see a video detailing the plans and read the consultation document, which boils down the months of preparation into a booklet explaining the new proposed model, and the two options for the county’s hospitals.
They could also speak to NHS professionals about their concerns.
The 'preferred' option of health chiefs would see Telford’s Princess Royal Hospital lose its emergency care provision. Shrewsbury would host the county's only A&E and Telford would become a 'planned care site' with an urgent care centre
Organisers say that option offers the best value for money and would mean fewer people would have to travel further for care in emergencies.
WATCH - Future Fit explained:
But Peter Scott, a Telford & Wrekin Councillor and mayor of Newport, said that it was vital that Telford residents spoke out in favour of an alternative option that would see Telford become the county’s main emergency centre.
He said: “We can’t afford to lose services to Shrewsbury, and if we don’t have our say properly we will sleepwalk into it.
"Option one will see emergency care pushed further away. If you're pregnant and in a car for example it will add time onto that journey and that can make a real difference.
"I don't see how anyone in Telford & Wrekin can support option one. There is a real potential that someone who is having a heart attack and has to add time onto their journey could die.
"It's probably the most important consultation in the county ever. This will affect people's lives now, so everyone has to get involved."
A further exhibition will be held at Wellington’s Methodist Church on July 11.
'Complete' A&E the priority
Doctors and members of the public alike were pleased to see the long-trailed Future Fit consultation finally get under way yesterday.
Tammy Wood knows more about hospital services in Shropshire than most, with her husband John being to Princess Royal Hospital nine times in the last six years for a series of conditions including a brain haemorrhage, heart failure and sepsis.
She said she was pleased that both options would see one site become a complete centre for emergencies and critical care.
Tammy, 53, said: “It is good to be able to sit down with the consultants and talk about things like the funding.
"I am probably quite unusual in that I am not that bothered about accident and emergency moving to Shrewsbury.
"What I am concerned about is having a complete A&E, which isn’t really happening at the moment.
"When my husband is being taken to hospital in blue lights at 2am and there is not a doctor in Telford that is my concern.
"I would happily spend another 10 minutes in an ambulance with a nurse to arrive at a fully-staffed A&E.”
Subramanian Kumaran is a consultant who works in Shropshire’s hospitals and said he was looking forward to a conclusion on the consultation.
He said: “I don’t have a preferred option, as I think both options will result in improvements and allow us to take on some services that currently people have to go to Stoke or Wolverhampton for.”
Dr Andrew Tapp is a consultant and medical director of the women and children’s care group in the county.
He said: “I think it is so important people their say on this. I hope we have input from as many people as possible.
“This is a massively important decision for people in Shrewsbury, Telford, Mid Wales and many other areas.”
Surgeon Mark Cheetham said he was pleased with how many people had turned up to the exhibition.
“It is obvious that people here are very passionate about their local hospitals, which isn’t true everywhere.”
