Berkhamsted
Citizens
Association

Just to bring members and non-members up to date.

For those who have a sense of humour!

On 22nd January 2008 I was sent the latest decisions and you can view the letter here.

For those of you who do not have the energy to wade through the 7 page letter, then

Delivering Quality Care for Hertfordshire
Summary by Norman Cutting

In late January, the decision was made public on the future of our health care.

As expected, Watford will be the 'local' A&E hospital with a local general hospital being developed in Hemel Hempstead. The decision regarding Watford was made some time ago, so it appears that although Emergency and acute hospital services for east and north Hertfordshire will be centralised at the Lister Hospital in Stevenage (considered marginally more accessible than QEII as a result of it's closer proximity to the A1(M) and nature of the inter-connecting roads, while the QEII is further away and surrounded by a residential network).

There will be a local general hospital established in Hemel Hempstead which should provide:
• Adult and children’s outpatients
• Diagnostic tests and investigations including pathology access, X-ray, MRI and ultrasound
• Pharmacy
• Ante natal and post natal care
• Urgent care

Childrens' emergency and planned care will take place at Watford, with adult planned operations will happen at St Albans City hospital.
A network of 8 urgent care centres will be set up, but 4 are already allocated (Lister, QEII, Watford and Hemel) to deal with over 60% of patients who do not need intensive or specialist care.

Access to the 'new' facilities will be helped by the appointment of a senior director to have strategic responsibility for transport issues and a support officer will be appointed to work alongside the Project Manager of the Hertfordshire Integrated Transport Project. It appears that £2.75millon will be committed by the organisation. It is also planning to spend £60million over the next 6 years to help local GPs etc. throughout the County to provide local primary health care and community services including access to intermediate care beds (recovery after surgery, I assume) and home care support.

The board has considered the proposed increase in population requirements put forward by both government and the regional assembly and consider that the previous plans are still valid even though there were concerns even then. The board also took into account that other health service providers will provide choice and Hertfordshire residents will continue to be able to take advantage of facilities outside the County.

When will it happen, I hear you ask.

Well, a senior level Programme Board will be established, a senior lead Programme Director will be appointed, so it will be all right.
Locally, interim general hospital services will be established from late summer, A&E and acute services will transfer to Watford from the autumn and an urgent care centre network will be established by the autumn of 2010.

Those readers who know about these things will have spotted that contrary to DoH guidelines, that a number of services have already moved to Watford even though their facilities have yet to be ungraded – even to the extent that emergency ambulances are 'parked up' outside Watford A&E to ensure government targets are met (seen within 4 hours, if you don't arrive, then 4 hours hasn't started – what a surprise!)