Future Fit: It’s time for Plan B, says former boss of hospital
An ex-hospital boss has urged health chiefs to consider building an emergency hospital to the east of Shrewsbury, after it emerged the cost of delivering Shropshire's Future Fit hospitals shake-up has soared to nearly £500 million.
David Sandbach, former chief executive of Telford’s Princess Royal Hospital (PRH), has campaigned for the move.
He claims PRH should be used for planned care and rehabilitation accommodation.
Mr Sandbach warned in July that the costs of the controversial scheme were “ballooning” and in a letter to the hospital trust's chairman Ben Reid, he said: "Chickens are now coming home to roost; it would not surprise me if the capital profile for the Future Fit plan reached circa £450,000,000+.”
Under the Future Fit plans, Royal Shrewsbury Hospital (RSH) would house the county's main emergency centre, with PRH taking over responsibility for planned care.
But Mr Sandbach said: "It is a stupid waste of money redeveloping a worn out hospital site, rather than moving RSH to a new site east of Shrewsbury and west of Telford."
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A leaked document has shown that the cost of delivering the original pre-consultation business case has risen to £498 million – £186m more than first anticipated.
According to the strategic outline case, the reason for the cost rise is due to inflation, increased awareness and knowledge and on-balance sheet adjustments.
Mr Sandbach claims there must have been a number of errors, including a failure "to understand the concept of building cost inflation" and check costings on a regular basis.
He says health chiefs now have the option of moving on with the scheme, trying to negotiate a better deal with NHS bosses – which recognises the inflation – or consider other options.
Mr Sandbach says one option would be to "use the £312m to open a 320 bed emergency hospital between Shrewsbury and Telford and use PRH as a planned hospital facility but with more intensive rehabilitation beds and facilities on that site".
The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, which runs PRH and RSH, has declined to comment on the details revealed in the leaked document.
Health commissioners previously said they expected the capital costs to remain at £312m, adding that whatever is provided has to be in line with the model consulted on.
A public consultation was carried out last year but the decision then made was challenged by Telford & Wrekin Council, which asked Health Secretary Matt Hancock for a review.
In October, Mr Hancock allowed the plans to go ahead, but asked for proposals to be developed for an ‘A&E Local’ at PRH, which is expected to be a downgrade from full A&E services.
The rising cost has also led to some campaigners calling for the scheme to be axed.
Meanwhile, the trust has put forward two options on how the plans can progress, which involve delivering the project in phases or considering a 'restricted development'.
It could mean a delay to delivering parts of the scheme.
A 'phased' delivery would see work initially taking place at RSH with plans down the line for new entrances at both hospitals and other refurbishments.
