Can we afford to be optimistic?

WHILE not counting our chickens, we can be reasonably optimistic about the future of Worthing Hospital's A&E facilities '” with the counterpart departments at Chichester and Haywards Heath also being recommended for retention by the top professor and clinical group who are advising the PCT boards.
By The Newsroom
Published 22nd Feb 2008, 11:49 BST
Updated 8th Jun 2018, 00:50 BST

Their recommendations also include the continuance of intensive care, routine elective surgery and acute medicine; a result which would amount to a huge success for KWASH campaigners.

Yet, I am sorry to note that it is still a toss-up whether Worthing will keep its consultancy-led maternity services.

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These latest recommendations include a staged centralisation to one hospital site (Worthing or St Richard's at Chichester) of such services.

If St Richard's "wins" this particular contest, then difficult birth cases would be handled there, with the more straight-forward deliveries being dealt with at a new midwife-led birthing unit, which could be sited anywhere in West Sussex.

This raises, again, all the arguments about patients, families and friends having to travel long distances via a non-too-friendly transport and roads system, and we are not talking small numbers here.

In the period from January 1, 2007, to January 31, 2008, there were 3,139 babies born at Worthing Hospital. The hospital's birth forecast for the rest of 2008 is an increase of five per cent to about 3,300.

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Worthing's birth catchment area includes Brighton, Hove, Portslade, Arundel, Haywards Heath, Billingshurst, Horsham and the Chanctonbury area, meaning our town is the well-used centre of a 180-degree "hub" for providing such a vital service.

The same principle would apply to the possibility of Worthing losing its in-patient children's services to St Richard's.

All this extra travelling imposed on a town set to see its population soar with nearly 900 new homes planned for West Durrington, with a certain boom in mums-to-be and children. What an example of joined-up thinking!

Another health matter which causes me concern is Health minister Lord Darzi's claim that single doctor practices should be replaced by one-stop health clinics run by several GPs.

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It's difficult to see how Lord Darzi's ambitions will benefit me, a Durrington resident.

At present, I can see my GP at either The Strand Surgery or Durrington Health Centre without an over-long distance to travel for such "personal" service.

If Lord Darzi succeeds in his wish to introduce his polyclinic plans nationwide, might I have to travel to the other side of town for my appointments?

It would mean yet another swing of the axe for accessible local services.

Related topics:ChichesterHaywards HeathWest SussexBrighton