DISCUSSIONS continued this week by St Albans-based West Herts Community Health Council (CHC) about how best to represent the public's concerns over the loss of services at Hemel Hempstead Hospital.

At a meeting on Tuesday, October 23, at its London Road offices patient watchdog, the CHC, discussed public concern at the decision by the Hertfordshire Partnership Trust to move its eight-bed Special Care Baby Unit Hemel Hempstead General to Watford General Hospital in the new year.

It also discussed the knock-on effect this decision had had of causing the North Herts Hospitals NHS Trust to take the decision to move in-patient obstetric and gynaecology services to Watford as well.

Following a meeting between health chiefs and members of the public at Dacorum Borough Council offices on Thursday, October 18, the CHC met on Tuesday to discuss the issues raised and further questions and queries people had put since that meeting.

And in a letter to Health Secretary Alan Milburn and the two trusts the CHC has outlined its concerns and an additional 30 to 40 follow-up questions.

Following responses to these letters and a meeting of a working group of the CHC on Tuesday to discuss the clinical incidents said to have been the catalyst for the SCBU closure, the CHC will meet in public on Wednesday, November 14, to give its recommendation.

A spokesman for the CHC said that it was within its remit to ask Mr Milburn to look at whether the closure of the SCBU should go ahead and whether obstetric and gynaecology needs to move with it.

Following criticism that the CHC was not acting quickly enough the spokesman said: "We want to make the right decision and to represent people."

October 24, 2001 16:35

Wendy Fielder