St Helier Hospital's bed closures will hit patients hard this winter - Burstow

4.38.29pm GMT Fri 27th Oct 2006

In reaction to further news of bed reductions and job losses at St Helier Hospital, London MP Paul Burstow has spoken out on behalf of local residents and warned that the proposed cuts will let patients down this winter.

Last week the hospital's management, St Helier and Epsom NHS Trust, announced that it expected to save £24 million over the next 18 months by reducing its number of beds by 170 combined with plans to cut 480 staff. These measures have been brought in after the hospital was told to reduce its costs by £20 million over the next two years.

This latest announcement raises further questions about the future of the hospital. An influential think-tank has suggested that at least one hospital in South West London could close while the Secretary of State for Health recently withdrew her recommendation for a new critical care hospital at the St Helier site.

Commenting on the issue, Paul Burstow said:

"The impact of these bed closures will be felt for years to come."

"The Trust management calls this a recovery plan; if it were a medical procedure it would kill the patient."

"My fear is that patients will be let down this winter because of a shortage of beds which will be followed by panic measures to re-open them."