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57,000 can’t be wrong

Jenny Kirby
25/ 1/2006

THE SECRETARY of State for Health was left in "no doubt" that the people of Macclesfield want to keep all core services at the hospital after she was presented with almost 57,000 Hands Off Our Hospital petition signatures.

Following the meeting with Patricia Hewitt, Macclesfield MP Sir Nicholas Winterton, said: "She was left in absolutely no doubt that the East Cheshire NHS Trust was the only trust serving a predominantly rural area and it would be wrong for vital services to be located only in urban areas with all the associated problems of transport, access, cost, time and inconvenience for those living in rural areas where one in six people do not own a car."

Sir Nicholas and Lady Ann Winterton presented the strong case to the Health Secretary after they formally delivered petitions from Macclesfield, Wilmslow and Congleton demanding children's inpatient, maternity, neonatal, as well as A&E, at the Victoria Road hospital be kept.

"We put a detailed case to the Secretary of State giving the reasons why it was essential for the services to be retained at Macclesfield Hospital on the grounds, not only of equity, but also excellence of service," he said.

Sir Nicholas added: "We stressed that maternity, obstetric, paediatric and children's services were affordable, sustainable, safe, highly regarded and responding to increased demand. They are also most importantly integral to the delivery and viability of future district general hospital services on the site at Macclesfield."

The MP said that Patricia Hewitt expressed her "understanding and appreciation" of the case and gave assurances that she would make sure she was informed of all the issues.

The Health Secretary indicated she could not intervene in the consultations but if the final proposals were objected to by stakeholders in that process, then the matter would be called in by the Department.

Sir Nicholas said: "The Secretary of State then gave us an assurance that she would meet us again should that prove to be the case."

Children's inpatient, maternity and neonatal services at Macclesfield Hospital are threatened by a review which hopes to streamline children's medical services across East Cheshire and Greater Manchester.

Consultations on Making It Better are currently underway and Macclesfield does not feature in the preferred option.

In the separate Future Healthcare Project review, A&E at Macclesfield has been included in all three options up for debate.

Consultations on how health services could be better delivered in East Cheshire begins on February 1.