It's also been reported that all 3 local MPs in Central Lancashire are pleading with the health secretary Matthew Hancock to shift gear and get Chorley A&E re-opened after it was closed during the viral pandemic.
But do all 3 Members of Parliament hold enough authority to get the job done and do what their electorate wants and re-open Chorley A&E full time?
Always the bone of contention is the hospital trusts case of staff shortages for re-opening the A&E. The objective however, under the CCGs plans are to permanently close Chorley A&E, build a new trauma centre, and move the profitable services out of Chorley hospital into private clinics under their ineptly titled program "Our Health Our Care".
In October last year Matt Hancock went on a tour of health services in Lancashire. The trust and CCGs claim this gave them the opportunity to state their case to replace Chorley A&E with a new build in central Lancashire and at the same time to "secure written commitment around central policy intent".
In other words to tie down the health sec. to commit to the NHS 10-year plan or STPs as we knew them.
The Scrutiny team at county hall however revealed some rather large flows, much of which are workforce issues, availability of alternative services and funding which the hospital trust/CCGs don't yet have.
To close beds/A&E the CCGs and Trust must PROVE alternative service provision is in place and that it can be 'sustained' over a long period.
None of these are achievable and never have been, which is why scrutiny at county hall queried not only why there's been no A&E staff recruited at the Chorley hospital, but also where do the hospital trust intend putting the outpatient services they've earmarked for closure in the Our Health Our Care program?
The issues are echoed by not just scrutiny councillors either, consultants and other clinicians stated in the scrutiny report..
"Clinicians displayed concern that primary care is not currently in a place to accept significant re-profiling of activity away from the acute system and that networks are in their infancy"
"The New Build option was not prioritised highest because a number of the clinical delegates questioned whether or not this would work with whole system redesign and the lag time involved in developing a new build was plainly not compatible with the current timelines around OHOC". source: appendix 4 Enhanced clinical scrutiny
The Tories in government have stated many times they want to fragment the NHS and convert it into a paying insurance type system. Indirectly this is what the current NHS 10-year plan is all about - introducing the American accountable care system of health insurance....
John Major stated "Gove had wanted to privatise the NHS, Boris Johnson wished to charge people for health services and Duncan Smith advocated moving to a social insurance system".
To ensure fragmentation of the NHS it's crucial that the more lucrative profitable low-risk outpatient services are MOVED out of a hospital setting into a community setting where it's much easier to bind to an alternative private provider contract under a different payment system (currently the American model of accountable care).
It's likely there is suspicion the whole affair is being dragged out until funding for the 2024/25 new build unit is made available - but until then the clinical commissioning groups have plans to restrict more surgery and ban more medicines along with handing MORE NHS contracts over to to private providers.
The issue of a full time A&E in Chorley A&E must take priority and we must not be sidelined by other issues. Let's keep talking about it and keep our beloved hospital services on OUR agenda and protected from the ravages of profiteering capitalism.
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