December 12, 2016 10.01 am
This story is over 90 months old
Lincolnshire Talks: Does Grantham really need an A&E?
The controversial overnight closure of Grantham A&E has been one of the most hotly discussed topics this year, putting passionate local residents at odds with the trust running Lincolnshire’s hospitals. United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust made the “unprecedented” decision to close the town’s A&E from 6.30pm until 9am in August, due to staffing shortages. The temporary…
The controversial overnight closure of Grantham A&E has been one of the most hotly discussed topics this year, putting passionate local residents at odds with the trust running Lincolnshire’s hospitals.
United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust made the “unprecedented” decision to close the town’s A&E from 6.30pm until 9am in August, due to staffing shortages.
However, a report this week has suggested that Grantham A&E could be downgraded to an urgent care centre, raising serious doubts over whether the department will ever fully reopen.
Jody Clark, founder of the Fighting 4 Grantham Hospital group, which has been campaigning for the town’s A&E to be fully reinstated, has described the possible downgrading as “ludicrous”.
She said: “I am honestly shocked at the ignorance of the impact the overnight closure has made on the community, the police and ambulance services as well as the supporting hospitals.
“To consider making Grantham an urgent care centre, is just ludicrous! How are Grantham and District residents meant to survive a heart attack? Stroke? Breathing difficulties? Meningitis? Septicaemia? If we have to travel an hour for emergency care?
“The roads from Grantham to Lincoln are not well lit and are rural country roads.
“We will continue to oppose the downgrading to urgent care centre and will continue to put pressure on to reopen our A&E 24/7.”
Andrew Morgan, chief executive of Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust, said: “There’s a very thriving future for Grantham Hospital. There have been issues around the A&E being 24 hours or not.
“It was never a plan to behind closed doors secretly close Grantham Hospital.
“There are options and discussions as part of the Sustainability and Transformation Plan to look at the future of what services should be at Grantham but as we’ve said many a time, these are all subject to public consultation.
“No decisions have been made.”
United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust CEO Jan Sobieraj
ULHT chief executive Jan Sobieraj said: “Keeping all services as they are is not an option as some services don’t always meet clinical guidelines and national standards and we often struggle with staffing shortages.
“We want patients to always be cared for by highly skilled, compassionate staff. We all want to prevent emergency admissions to hospital.
“Those who need specialised treatment will get safe, high quality care at the best hospital, though possibly not always at their nearest hospital.”
Stefan is the Local Democracy Reporter covering Greater Lincolnshire. You can contact him directly with your news via email at [email protected]
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Exciting news for MyLocal app users and The Lincolnite readers! Our latest update is now available to download from your app store and comes packed with the best local news experience you can enjoy.
Revamped News Feed: Enjoy faster loading times and smoother scrolling that make catching up on local news a breeze.
New Play Video Feed: Dive into a dynamic video feed that brings local stories to life in a whole new way.
Enhanced In-App Browser: Access external links quickly and efficiently, right from the app, without any distractions.
Update your MyLocal app from your app store (version 2.73) now and start enjoying these great new features today!
P.S.: Start your MyLocal membership today to support MyLocal and The Lincolnite deliver you a better local news experience and honest journalism from across Lincolnshire.
P.P.S.: We have some huge things in the pipeline, stay tuned!