Future Fit: Health chiefs reject call for new Shropshire hospital
Two senior figures in the Shropshire’s health service have rejected suggestions that Future Fit plans should include a proposal for a new hospital.
Dr Julian Povey, chair of Shropshire Clinical Commissioning Group, and Mark Cheetham, care group medical director at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, have both insisted a plan for a new hospital would not work.
It comes after the leader of Telford & Wrekin Council’s Conservative group, Councillor Andrew Eade, called for an extraordinary meeting of the authority to discuss including an additional option in the Future Fit consultation – a new specialist emergency care centre, based on one built in Cramlington, Northumberland.
Writing on Twitter in response to the suggestion Mr Cheetham argued that the plan would not deal with staffing issues currently faced by hospitals in the county.
He said: “Building another site won’t help the workforce shortage or deal with backlog maintenance.”
Dr Povey said that the plan had been looked at before Future Fit made its recommendations and that the new-build emergency centre (EC) was abandoned because it was a more expensive option.
He said: “A greenfield EC was considered early on and discounted, was a more expensive option.”
Dr Povey said that the emphasis now had to be on consulting on the two options put forward by the Future Fit board. The preferred option involves a single A&E unit at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, while planned services would be centred at Telford’s Princess Royal Hospital.
It also involves moving the consultant-led women and children’s unit to Shrewsbury, although Telford would retain a midwife-led unit.
Dr Povey said: “The Future Fit process has arrived with a preferred option, we plan to consult on two options. Getting out to consultation allows public and organisations to raise issues and information not previously considered, and comment on the preferred option and second option.
"Future Fit needs to be in a position to get to consultation as soon as possible after NHS England give the go-ahead.”
Responding to Dr Povey’s comments Mr Cheetham added: “We really don’t need to revisit old discarded options again.”
