March 22, 2019 4.58 pm This story is over 60 months old

Local Democracy Weekly: Funding fairly for county’s A&E departments?

Bosses are looking for funding for Boston A&E
Grantham & District Hospital. Photo: United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust

It’s understandable that health campaigners in Grantham were left “completely unimpressed” after the trust which runs the county’s hospitals said it was going to ask for extra cash for Pilgrim A&E.

Directors at ULHT told Local Democracy Reporter Calvin Robinson that they were continuing talks with NHS England and NHS Improvement for funding after failing to resolve issues with overcrowding.

Great news for Boston if successful because the bosses want to extend the A&E and have made applications to the borough’s planning department.

However, it didn’t go down well in Grantham, which has seen its A&E close at night with the department set to become an Urgent Treatment Centre under the latest “Healthy Conversations” plans.

Posters on Fighting 4 Grantham Hospital Facebook were quick to point out the obvious that people from the area having to go to Boston and Lincoln wasn’t going to help the situation.

Martin Wormall even asked “don’t Grantham people matter?”

Some accused them of stealing doctors, though, in fairness, others pointed out that recruitment is and has for a long time been difficult in the county – especially it seems, in Boston itself.

It appears this isn’t the only thing to leave campaigners unimpressed across the county however, as we have been told by several people that they had been left “unimpressed” by the most recent public engagements (not consultations — remember).

Emma Wilcock, from the SOS Pilgrim campaign group contacted us to say they were left unfulfilled by what they felt was a “box ticking event”.

She added none of her questions could be answered and the emerging options of centralised services were still a worry to them.

Similarities to the rejected Lincolnshire Sustainability and Transformation Plan, which was binned in 2016, had also caught their eye and caused concern.

It does seem sometimes that whatever health bosses do they can’t meet the expectations of campaigners… and we continue to wonder why?