Westminster Diary - 25th January 2007

Thursday, 25th January 2007

The recent Acute Services Review of local health provision was a worthwhile piece of work, conducted in the spirit of seeking to improve our hospitals. As the Review makes clear, patient safety must always be the primary concern. In cases where, due to inadequate technical back-up or unavailable personnel, it would be unsafe to treat a patient at a particular hospital, of course they should not be. The proposed changes to cancer care will almost certainly be an improvement. On maternity and paediatric services at Warwick Hospital, the news is not bad but not wholly reassuring. There will be no change now, but the position will be reviewed.

So we should not be scared by the conclusions of this Review, but we should be clear-eyed about what it is and what it is not. It is a genuine attempt to assess what our hospitals should do and effective ways of doing it. It is not a guarantee that its content will become reality. It is a proposal, not a prescription.

The shape of healthcare in our area will be determined not just by what is appropriate, but also by what is affordable. That is why the Acute Services Review should be greeted with caution – not because it is wrong in its recommendations, but because we do not yet know whether its recommendations will be effected by a local NHS still in financial difficulty. I recognise and appreciate how hard hospital managers and staff are working to deal with substantial deficits, but until they win that battle, we will not know how hospital-based healthcare in Coventry and Warwickshire will look. We are not out of danger yet.

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Updated on Thursday, 25th January 2007