Weston General Hospital PRIVATISATION

Описание: Public won't care 2 hoots says MP John Penrose.




HEALTH bosses are looking to put Weston General Hospital up for sale.

The move could see a private provider taking over the running of the Weston- super-Mare hospital or a merger with another NHS health trust.

An advert went into the Official Journal of the European Union calling for expressions of interest from other NHS trusts, voluntary or private organisations who could run the site from 2015.

The Bristol Post has previously reported that Weston Area Health Trust, which runs the hospital, has been considering its future because it is too small to become a foundation trust in its own right. The government wants all hospitals to gain foundation status -- where they have greater budget freedom but are more accountable to their local communities -- but the Weston trust does not believe it can meet the requirements due to the size of its budget and workforce and is considering alternatives.

WAHT has been working with the NHS Trust Development Authority on its future and says the advert was part of attempts to "test the market" to see whether there was "an appetite to pursue a franchise or acquisition opportunity".

It is understood that responses to the advert will be used to build a business case for the future of Weston General, which will need to be approved before formal bids to run its services can be made.

The hospital trust said that if a private hospital provider took over the running of Weston General it would remain within the NHS, with health service staff and patients.

Last year independent hospital provider Circle, which runs a hospital in Bath, became the first to take control of an NHS hospital, in Cambridgeshire.

The advert said that the work of North Somerset commissioners could see the need for a shift in the facilities and workforce at the 265-bed Weston General, adding that provision of children's services at the hospital is already under review.

A spokeswoman for the trust said: "As one of the smallest hospital trusts in the country, WAHT does not have the critical mass of clinically and financially sustainable services to become a standalone NHS Foundation Trust, so it has various options for the future. The trust could be acquired by another NHS organisation, or it could find a private sector or voluntary sector partner -- or partners -- to run the services that local Clinical Commissioning Groups wish to commission.

"Whichever option is finally selected, all staff and assets will remain within the NHS. The services at the Hospital will continue to be NHS services, delivered to NHS patients, by NHS staff."

University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the city centre hospitals including Bristol Royal Infirmary, St Michael's and the children's hospital, said it has "no plans" to take over Weston General, but when the NHS Trust Development Authority announces its plans for the future of services at the hospital would consider what role it could play.

A spokeswoman said: "Proposals for determining the future arrangements for Weston Area Health Trust have yet to be published; such arrangements are the responsibility of the NHS Trust Development Authority (NTDA). At such time that the NTDA announces its intentions for securing the future for services in Weston, the trust will consider carefully what role(s) it might play in ensuring that residents of North Somerset receive high quality, locally based services, wherever that is appropriate."

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PUBLIC WONT CARE 2 HOOTS says MP John Penrose.