Dear Horley Views.
As Chairman of KTHG and a resident of Horley. I was wondering if you would be willing to post our latest update, containing details of the Hospital Trusts, early options document, which has just been made public.
The proposed change options are staggering, if implemented, will severely affect, the availability of services at our Horton Hospital. In particular, the loss of A and E, and children’s ward and services. A trek to the Oxford JR, with our sick young ones is unthinkable.
Keith Strangwood. Chairman KTHG 2 Lane Close . Horley. 07740599736
THIS COULD BE OUR BIGGEST FIGHT EVER
Breaking news – A&E, medicine, orthopaedics, CCU also at risk!
At today’s public session of the CPN, the OUHFT presented their “emerging options” for the Horton General Hospital. The OUHFT said all options will need to be assessed for activity, workforce, finance and estates and there will be a full consultation in October 2016.
Option 1 is what we currently have at the Horton General Hospital. It was initially presented to the CPN, and to the midwives on 3 June, as the “status quo” but more recently (perhaps as a result of unwanted publicity?) it has been honoured as an Option.
Option 1, the status quo, is what the experts in the form of the IRP decreed we must have, at the end of the last campaign in 2007/8.
Option 1, the status quo, is what the experts in the form of the IRP decreed we must have, at the end of the last campaign in 2007/8.
Andrew Stevens, OUHFT Director of Planning & Information, said “Option 1 is the status quo but if we thought that was adequate ….. we would not be doing this exercise”.
So let’s look at Options 2 and 3, which the OUHFT believe to be the only real options.
Under Option 2, Banbury’s Horton General Hospital would:
- Lose A&E – downgraded to GP urgent care and Minor Injuries Unit
- Lose Acute Stroke and Rehab – downgraded to Rehab and Early Supported Discharge
- Surgery (elective day cases) – would be limited to 8am to 3pm
- Lose Surgery – elective inpatients
- Lose elective orthopaedic inpatients
- Medicine – elective day cases – would be limited to 8am – 3pm
- Lose Medicine – elective inpatients
- Medicine – non-elective inpatients – inpatient ward would be downgraded to frail assessment unit
- Lose Critical adult care (Critical Care Unit)
- Lose consultant-led Maternity – downgraded to Midwife Led Unit (ie no consultants or anaesthetists allocated to maternity)
- Lose Special Care Baby Unit
- Paediatric inpatients downgraded to paediatric observation and assessment unit (8-10) (We think this means open 8am to 10pm, ie no overnight patients)
Under Option 3, Banbury’s Horton General Hospital would see:
- A&E retained as “integrated urgent care centre with ED function + out of hours + minor injury unit + walk in centre”
- Lose Acute Stroke and Rehab – downgraded to Rehab and Early Supported Discharge
- Adult Critical Care – retained but in the form of a High Dependency Unit on-site + “e-ICU”
- Lose consultant-led Maternity – downgraded to Midwife Led Unit (ie no consultants or anaesthetists allocated to maternity)
- Lose Special Care Baby Unit
- Paediatric inpatients downgraded to “paediatric observation and assessment unit, assessment and clinical decision unit (24/7)”
Keep the Horton General campaigners, midwives, SCBU staff and members of the public mounted a spirited and angry attack on the safety aspects of the options presented, the failure to communicate properly with staff, and the OUHFT’s failure to ensure that the so-called midwife staff representatives were indeed representative of the staff, their opinions and commitment to the Horton General Hospital.
We were delighted to hear from Andrew McHugh (practice manager) that, although he had supported previous OUHFT proposals, he was very concerned about the Midwife Led Unit (MLU) proposal. He had undertaken a survey of GPs in the area and they were “overwhelmingly against the MLU on the grounds of safety”.
Andrew Stevens (OUHFT) stressed that they are still “evaluating and refining options” and that there will be a full public consultation beginning October 2016. He repeatedly attributed the options to various Clinical Groups, and said the OUHFT would consider other options if put forward by the CPN. As KTHG is aware of other smaller hospitals running Consultant Led Units with middle-grade staff (something the OUHFT Dean maintains is not possible, thereby creating the very problem that the OUHFT seek to “solve”), this offers some hope .
A special CPN maternity workshop will be set up, including actual working midwives, and attempts were made to secure similar promises for A&E, paediatrics and inpatient orthopaedics.
KTHG chairman Keith Strangwood proposed a motion to remove the worst option, Option 2, from consideration, it being totally contrary to the statement in the same paper that “almost all the patients currently being cared for at the Horton will continue to be cared for locally”. A vote was taken after KTHG forced the issue, but unfortunately the motion did not pass, with 3 votes for striking out the option, and 9 for keeping the worst option in the process. The documents presented in the meeting are publicly available athttp://www.cherwell.gov.uk/…/CPN_Agenda___Meeting_doc_14061…The slide attached to this post is on page 11.
![knit-and-stitch[1]](https://thehorleyviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/knit-and-stitch1.png?w=247&h=110)
This new relaxed and friendly group meet at 7pm in the Old School room every 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month. (See 
Yes that’s Maureen who marked the Queen’s 90th birthday with this right royal outfit shown above in today’s Banbury Guardian. We also featured it on Facebook on the day thanks to Jack (Lane Close) sharing his #selfieswithJudy 
TheHorleyViews.com 