Hospital campaigners fear for future of St John’s

Apr 28 2011 by Alistair Watson, West Lothian Courier

HOSPITAL campaigners have raised concerns about the future of St John’s Hospital after claiming all emergency heart patients in West Lothian may have to travel to Edinburgh for treatment under new NHS plans.

A leaked letter received by the Courier appears to outline plans to move emergency care for patients with chest pain out of both the Livingston hospital and Edinburgh’s Western General, to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary.

In a letter to cardiology staff the clinical director for cardiology for the organisation, Neal Uren, said: “It is our intention to facilitate transfers from St John’s as patients come through from A&E from the initial assessment unit, and to transfer these patients to us before they reach the medical assessment ward, or elsewhere in the hospital.”

Stop the Downgrade campaign members have slammed the proposals and said it was another example of the health board’s plan to downgrade St John’s to a “hospital for the elderly”.

However, NHS Lothian said they have still to consult on the plans, which they say will not apply to all chest pain patients but only those who need an angiogram.

But this has not appeased Action to Save St John’s Hospital Party Councillor Gordon Beurskens who says he fears for the Livingston hospital’s future.

He added: “I am appalled by NHS Lothian’s conduct. We have been repeatedly assured that there would be no further removal of services from St John’s.

“This must be stopped now. It cannot be allowed to happen.

“NHS Lothian want to shift more and more emergency patients away from St John’s straight to the Royal Infirmary.

“They keep denying it and they keep on tying to fob us off with spin.”

Councillor Beurskens said the plans hadn’t been thought through properly.

He added: “Can the RIE cope with the extra work? Are there enough ambulances to make the transfers, given that we have already seen difficulties with ambulance cover in recent years?

“If this is allowed to happen, then cardiology at St John’s is over, as is the medical unit.

“In the letter they say that the proposed changes will “potentially” improve quality of life for patients from St John’s and the Western.

“It doesn’t matter whether it’s one patient or one thousand: it shouldn’t be happening. Patients shouldn’t be transferred because it’s “potentially” better for them — it should be or they shouldn’t do it.”

NHS Lothian said far from downgrading St John’s they had invested millions of pounds over the last few years in bringing more services to the hospital.

Jackie Sansbury, chief operating officer for NHS Lothian’s University Hospitals Division said the proposal was just one of many plans the health authority were looking at to ensure cardiology patients get fast access to the best treatment and added there had been a 40 per cent reduction in mortality rates for heart disease in West Lothian residents over the past nine years.

She added: “The RIE is the only hospital in South-East Scotland to carry out cardiac catheterisation (angiogram), and all patients from the region are referred there from Borders, Fife and Forth Valley as well as West Lothian for this specialised treatment.

“Currently, patients may be admitted to another hospital for a short period before being transferred to the RIE. Under the new proposals being considered, patients would be transferred directly to the RIE so that they can receive faster treatment.

“Only those patients who require cardiac catheterisation treatment would be transferred from St John’s, or other hospitals, directly to the RIE. These patients are already treated at the RIE, and this proposal would simply reduce the amount of time they wait in hospital before being transferred.

“The number of patients currently transferring to the RIE from St John’s for cardiac catheterisation treatment is approximately 150 patients each year.

“A range of stakeholders from across the region will be consulted on the plans before they are implemented.

“This is just one of a number of options which are currently being explored to help us ensure all patients across Lothian get the fastest possible access to the most appropriate treatment.”