Epsom General Hospital - The Looming Crisis

2.34.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Sat 1st May 2004

The future of Epsom General Hospital in Dorking Road was due to be decided by NHS chiefs at a critical meeting on 17th June.

There have been concerns about its future ever since its forced merger with St Helier hospital in Sutton some years ago, including more than one threat to its A&E Department. In 2001 a plan to downgrade services at Epsom was abandoned due to public outcry. In 2003 a new plan proposed a series of Local Care centres with a single Critical Care hospital at an undecided site, widely expected to be Sutton.

The NHS has interpreted the reaction to this proposal as agreement and has recently been consulting on the criteria to be used in deciding on the location for the Critical Care centre. In responding to this consultation, Epsom & Ewell Lib Dems stressed that the most important consideration should be accessibility for the public. They also emphasised that Epsom General hospital should be retained as the Critical Care centre. In particular they do not accept that Epsom General should lose its maternity and A&E departments.

Epsom & Ewell Liberal Democrats' document "Response to NHS Consultation" can be read using the "Related Link" below.

Jonathan Lees, the Lib Dem parliamentary candidate for Epsom & Ewell, joined spokesmen for other groups and political parties, including Chris Grayling MP, at a series of "Save Epsom Hospital" meetings. He said "The message coming through from the people is to save Epsom Hospital - and if that means divorce from St Helier, then so be it."

"Deciding the selection criteria is completely missing the point. Why are we going through a major review, with the likelihood of losing Epsom? Surely we should have been running a critical assessment of our relationship with St Helier. Why discuss selection criteria, when what we have is a failed marriage? It is time that we stood up for ourselves! We support Epsom Hospital and we want it to stay in Epsom!"

Related Link:

Response to NHS Consultation