Harsh reality of Rochdale Infirmary changes sets in

Rochdale Infirmary

“If this happens it is going to be horrendous and put the lives of every single person here at risk.”

These are the words of a councillor and a community living in fear of what lies around the corner if plans to relocate A&E, children’s and maternity services from Rochdale Infirmary to The Royal Oldham Hospital go ahead next year.

The move was agreed in 2007 by The Pennine Acute Trust, but there has been a growing voice of discontent from the Rochdale community, especially since the date for change was brought forward last month to April 2011, although this is not final.

Last week Rochdale Council passed a vote of no confidence in the Trust, lead by Councillor Jean Ashworth, a key member of the Friends of Our Hospital group since its formation.

More than anything, people in Rochdale are scared about the consequences of having to travel the longer distance to Oldham in an emergency or to give birth.

“It is all to do with money, not lives,” said Councillor Ashworth. “The Pennine Acute is just chain-sawing our services.

“It is really frightening because they are putting people’s lives at risk and Oldham is not going to be able to cope with the extra pressure. All it is with Pennine Acute is saving money and bad management and it is not acceptable.”

Despite this growing concern, the people behind the move insist the changes are based on what members of the public said they wanted.

Making it Better, which is concerned with children and families in Greater Manchester, and Healthy Futures, a programme of change for healthcare services in the North-East of Greater Manchester, both carried out public consultations before the changes were announced in 2007.

Making it Better was the biggest in the history of the NHS, whilst Healthy Futures claimed to reach 106,500 people, suggesting the results would be popular, but this is far from the case in Rochdale.

Pennine Acute, Healthy Futures and Making it Better maintain they are doing the right thing, but since the date for change has moved they are being forced ever-more on the defensive.

Speaking after the announcement in November, John Saxby, Chief Executive of The Trust, said: “The timescale for implementing the agreed changes at Rochdale Infirmary has always depended on the ability to maintain safe services and capital building solutions. The difficulties we face in sustaining safe clinical services have recently become more evident.”

The Trust insists patient safety is their number one priority and staff shortages are key to the acceleration of the move, but this has not dispelled rumours of financial difficulty.

Finances are of little concern to the people on the ground who will have to deal with whatever challenges may be thrown up by the changes, apart from the extra cost of a bus or taxi journey to hospital.

Vera Hirst, Chairwoman of the Rochdale branch of Age Concern, is one such figure. She has been involved with the older generation in the community for a number of years, and was one of the original members of the Save Our Hospital campaign.

She is concerned older people are not getting to have their say, despite the previous consultations, and believes they will suffer as a result.

“It is very disturbing that the care of the elderly is being put at risk,” said Ms Hirst. “It was understood we would have a choice of care but that is not happening.

“The problem for older people is that they are going to be taken out of their comfort zone and having lived in and around the Rochdale area all their lives, they are suddenly not having a say any more.

“They feel isolated, threatened and worried the services are being taken away and no one cares about them anymore.

“We have been promised all these things and now the promises have been broken. The people who have made the decisions are not local and they don’t have any interest because they do not understand what people here need.”

Words like this strike a chord with much of the community, from the elderly to families with young children, to mothers with babies on the way.

Making it Better is responsible for the health of these families and babies, and when the changes were announced in 2007 said they would mean more services closer to home for children and their mothers.

With inpatient maternity and children’s services moving from Rochdale to Oldham this appears to be the opposite of what is happening but Dr Mike Maresh, Clinical Lead for the Greater Manchester Maternity Network, is adamant this is not the case.

More community nurses are being trained so hospital visits can be replaced by appointments at community clinics, the aim being mothers will only need to go to Oldham for delivery.

Unfortunately it is this critical journey they are worried about, and Dr Maresh realises it is not an ideal situation.

He said: “You have got to have a compromise. Either you have one hospital department offering these services nearby where staff are under pressure, or you have a situation where there is a slightly longer journey for services that are not under pressure. It will take some people a little bit longer to get to Oldham but on average it is not a huge distance compared with the rest of the country.”

Whatever the justification for the compromises, they do not sit well with those giving everything to save Rochdale Infirmary.

For Councillor Ashworth it is not a battle that will end with votes of no confidence or deferred decisions.

“I want this to go all the way to the Human Rights Commission. Our human rights are being taken away without concern for the health and wellbeing of the borough,” she said.

“We can fight and we can win but we can only win by working together, fighting together and standing together.”

For more information about the Friends of Our Hospital group, visit: http://www.fooh.org.uk/