Anger at threat to Guildford's A & E department

8.59.55pm UTC (GMT +0000) Fri 21st Apr 2006

Sue Doughty has reacted with fury to the news the Royal Surrey is to 'consult' on the future of its Accident and Emergency Unit. The news has shocked staff and local people.

If the department were closed, local people would be forced to go to St Peter's Chertsey for emergency treatment. The former Member of Parliament for Guildford stated: "I am appalled at the idea of 'consulting' on such a vital service, which if closed or reduced in any way, will put local people at risk. We know what happens with these consultations - it costs a lot of money to talk to a lot of people and then they still go ahead with their original plans!" Sue is particularly anxious about urgent cases such as heart attacks, strokes and accidents where getting treatment at the right time makes all the difference. "We know that since the closure of Ashford Hospital it has been impossible to park close to St Peter's Hospital. Congestion is a major problem and can block access by ambulance." Sue fears that the proposals will lead to a return to the old days when ambulances were unable to unload patients and had to wait for space.

Patients living to the south of Guildford will be disappointed to learn that Horsham and Crawley hospitals have closed their A&E department. The Royal Surrey has successfully opened a walk in centre, run by highly trained nursing staff. However this facility is not open on a 24 hour basis and is not staffed to deal with emergencies requiring a doctor.

Lib Dem councillors have also reacted strongly. County Councillor Pauline Searle, a member of the County's Health Scrutiny committee said: "I know how much local people rely on our hospital. It has improved its services enormously in recent years and it is quite wrong to downgrade it."

Changes to paediatric and maternity services which are being considered would leave parents having to take their children to Frimley Park hospital. Sue Doughty, who was at the opening of the new Children's ward at the Royal Surrey said: "The new ward is fantastic, how can this all be allowed to go to waste."

There are many unanswered questions in the proposals. In particular the Orthopaedic and Neurology departments, which work closely with A&E will be affected. Urgent treatment for eye problems such as detached retina will not be provided at Woking. It is uncertain where head injuries will be treated.

Lib Dems have put the blame fairly and squarely at the door of the government. Sue Doughty said: "We are paying for the government's failure to manage its finances properly. They couldn't even correctly calculate the cost of the doctors' contracts. Their £6bn IT project is set to fail, in fact I doubt if they could even manage to work out the cost of an elastoplast. This is a shabby way to treat our community, and a shabby way to treat NHS staff who have worked so hard to improve services."