NUNEATON MP Marcus Jones and North Warwickshire MP Dan Byles have welcomed a decision by the Arden Cluster to scrap a controversial consultation that could have seen services axed at the George Eliot Hospital.
As exclusively revealed in the Nuneaton News yesterday, it has been announced that Maternity and Obstetric services at the Trust have been saved and will continue to be provided from the current Nuneaton site.
“I am absolutely delighted that maternity and related services will be staying at the George Eliot Hospital,” said Marcus Jones.
“This has been a worrying time for many people in the town and the decision to choose Option 6 is the right one.
“I am still concerned about the provision of in-patient paediatrics and the likely closure of the Caterina Ward under Option 6. We must be absolutely certain that there is sufficient capacity elsewhere for children to use these services.”
Dan Byles added: “We now need to crack on with putting our local GPs in charge of commissioning health services for local people.”
A spokesperson for the Arden Cluster explained: "The Arden Cluster is now at the point where we will recommend to the Arden Board that the preferred option for the future of paediatric services in North Warwickshire is that inpatient services for children move to University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire, and that all other paediatric services, and maternity services, remain at George Eliot.
“In addition, a short stay paediatric assessment unit will be established at George Eliot Hospital to ensure that children who need rapid assessment locally receive it.
"Having considered this at its meeting and in view of the fact that local people have indicated dur ing the preconsultation phase that they wouldmost likely suppor t this opt ion, the Warwickshire County Council, Adult Social Care and Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee decided that, in their view, although this represented a substantial change they supported Option 6 and that a formal Public Consultation exercise would not be necessary.”
She added: "The Arden Cluster of PCTs will now discuss this potential process change with other key stakeholders before taking a final decision at its May Board meeting about whether or not to consult formally."
