West Cumberland Hospital
Yet another story this week expressing fear for the future of local hospital services in West Cumbria. Another week, another doctor retires and expresses concern.
Dr Tim Eyre, a consultant radiologist, has left West Cumberland Hospital after 19 years, for Nobles Hospital in the Isle of Man. In a letter to The Whitehaven News he says he fears for the future of his former colleagues and the future of the West Cumberland Hospital.
The full letter is very well worth reading, however briefly he gave the following reasons for leaving
· The Chief Executive went back on her word after promising a college review of radiology services over two years ago
· Radiology empire building in Carlisle continues with three new appointments while any discussion of expansion merely to cope with ever increasing work load at West Cumberland is ignored by management.
· Training and recruitment of radiological staff in some areas has been neglected
· We were without basic fluoroscopy services for over a year because management would not comply with health and safety recommendations – staff and patients had to go to Carlisle.
· Unrealistic job plans – the WCH doctors undertook more taxing work than their colleagues in Carlisle but the Carlisle doctors were the ones paid for extra sessions.
· There has been a chronic run down or loss of services generally at West Cumberland with the loss of pathology, psychiatry and threats to many other services
· There appears to be an agenda to reduce services in the West in order to maintain them in Carlisle where the PFI hospital cannot be allowed to fail even though it is a much less efficient hospital in terms of value for money
In light of Dr Eyre’s comments, if the NHS Trust does not wish to preside over the slow death of our local hospital they must take positive action now to restore morale and demonstrate that the West Cumberland has a future. The best thing they could do would be to give, and be seen to give, 100 per cent support to proposals for a “ health park” in Whitehaven.
In these circumstances the promise at the last election by our local Labour candidate and current MP that there was no threat whatsoever to West Cumberland Hospital looks increasingly like a poor joke.
Dr Tim Eyre, a consultant radiologist, has left West Cumberland Hospital after 19 years, for Nobles Hospital in the Isle of Man. In a letter to The Whitehaven News he says he fears for the future of his former colleagues and the future of the West Cumberland Hospital.
The full letter is very well worth reading, however briefly he gave the following reasons for leaving
· The Chief Executive went back on her word after promising a college review of radiology services over two years ago
· Radiology empire building in Carlisle continues with three new appointments while any discussion of expansion merely to cope with ever increasing work load at West Cumberland is ignored by management.
· Training and recruitment of radiological staff in some areas has been neglected
· We were without basic fluoroscopy services for over a year because management would not comply with health and safety recommendations – staff and patients had to go to Carlisle.
· Unrealistic job plans – the WCH doctors undertook more taxing work than their colleagues in Carlisle but the Carlisle doctors were the ones paid for extra sessions.
· There has been a chronic run down or loss of services generally at West Cumberland with the loss of pathology, psychiatry and threats to many other services
· There appears to be an agenda to reduce services in the West in order to maintain them in Carlisle where the PFI hospital cannot be allowed to fail even though it is a much less efficient hospital in terms of value for money
In light of Dr Eyre’s comments, if the NHS Trust does not wish to preside over the slow death of our local hospital they must take positive action now to restore morale and demonstrate that the West Cumberland has a future. The best thing they could do would be to give, and be seen to give, 100 per cent support to proposals for a “ health park” in Whitehaven.
In these circumstances the promise at the last election by our local Labour candidate and current MP that there was no threat whatsoever to West Cumberland Hospital looks increasingly like a poor joke.
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