‘We will fight to save Welshpool hospital services’
On Wednesday, the Health Board published its papers ahead of Wednesday’s meeting to decide whether to centralise physical-health inpatient beds at Newtown for North Powys, closing facilities at Llanidloes, Welshpool and Machynlleth.
But the papers also showed plans to close the hospital’s X-ray and Minor Injury units, decimating the health services availabke at the community hospital.
And with this being phase one and multi-phased plan, the crumbs that are being left in Welshpool could well be completely hoovered up by the cash-strapped Health Board to leave nothing.
The changes would represent a dramatic reshaping of healthcare across Montgomeryshire, with three communities that have relied on their local hospitals for generations losing inpatient provision altogether.
Newtown, meanwhile, would become one of only two enhanced Urgent Care Centres serving the whole of Powys and would take on an expanded inpatient, rehabilitation and recovery role.
Independent Welshpool county councillor, Cllr Graham Breeze, described it is as his “darkest day” after 10 years in office, and now the Montgomeryshire Liberal Democrats’ two county councillors for Welshpool have also stressed that a rural healthcare system needs a strong network of community facilities rather than expecting patients and their families to travel ever greater distances for care.
They have vowed to mount a major campaign across Montgomeryshire against the loss of local services and are calling on the Plaid Cymru Welsh Government to intervene before the plans progress any further.
Welshpool Councillors Richard Church and Carol Robinson said: “What is being proposed for Montgomeryshire is devastating and the cuts to Welshpool are even worse than we can imagine.
“Welshpool stands to lose its hospital beds, its Minor Injury Unit and its X-ray provision. Llanidloes loses its beds. Machynlleth loses its beds and X-ray service. One by one, services that generations of people have relied upon are being pulled away from our towns.
“We support better services and investment in Newtown, but this cannot become a choice between investing in one Montgomeryshire town and stripping services from all the others.
“There comes a point where you have to say enough is enough. Our rural communities deserve better than constantly being told that another service has to go.
“The time has come for the Plaid Cymru Health Minister to intervene, Plaid promised a rural premium for public services before the election, now is the time to make good on that promise and help save health care provision in Montgomeryshire.”
The final decision will be made on Wednesday, next week.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|