Romsey Hospital

Had a meeting with the local Primary Care Trust about the future of community hospitals. There has been a lot of speculation about this in the local press following the publication of a draft consultation document which advocated reducing the number of community beds over a wider area.

The final consultation paper will be with us in July (if things go according to plan) - it is pointless to speculate until that time but I do think that the future of the hospital is secure but its use may change slightly. The one thing that seems to be lacking in all of the proposals is the element of choice - so beloved of Government - and it seems to me to be an artificial exercise to consult on blanket proposals - declare that on balance people would prefer health services to be delivered at home - and then to deny people an individual choice. It would seem that choice is OK only if it is the sort of choice that Government would like people to have.