On Monday 16 January, the Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group published the first part of its consultation on the future of NHS services in Oxfordshire. The proposed Oxfordshire Transformation Programme could have major ramifications for Banbury’s Horton General Hospital.
While options do include improving planned treatment at Horton, this could be at a cost of a permanent downgrade of the Horton’s maternity service as well as moving stroke services and some critical care patients from Banbury to the John Radcliffe in Oxford.
What happens to the Horton is a concern for us all. Banbury Conservatives are at the forefront of the all-Party campaign, working with Victoria Prentis MP, to maintain vital acute services at our much-loved hospital.
Councillor Kieron Mallon, leader of Banbury Town Council and Bloxham and Easington County Councillor says: “We do not believe that the CCG’s proposals are in the best interests of Banbury residents. Our town cannot be without local acute service provision. And that’s why we are urging all Banbury residents to respond to the consultation.”
Phase one of the consultation will run for 12 weeks from Monday 16 January and will include:
- Critical care (life threatening or serious injuries and illnesses) at the Horton
- Non-emergency, planned care and diagnostics at the Horton
- Acute stroke services in Oxfordshire
- Maternity services, including obstetrics, the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) and emergency gynaecology in North Oxfordshire
- The provision of hospital beds
Phase Two of the consultation, which will cover A&Es, children services, and community hospitals is expected to begin in May.
Unusually, the Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group have decided to split the consultation process despite fierce opposition from Banbury MP, Victoria Prentis. On this decision, Victoria says: “I am extremely disappointed with the OCCG’s decision. I have made it very clear that I do not support splitting the Transformation Programme into two parts. Healthcare services are explicitly connected; you cannot ask residents to express their views on what is being proposed in Phase One when we have no idea what will be proposed in Phase Two, or what impact our responses in the first part will have on the second part. It is simply wrong that we are not being given the full picture.
Nevertheless, despite its shortcomings, it is essential that we present a united front and try our absolute best to engage with the consultation to make sure Banbury’s voice is heard.”
Eddie Reeves, Conservative candidate for Calthorpe Division in the upcoming County Council elections says: “The Horton Hospital doesn’t just matter to the area and constituents’ that I am hoping to represent, it matters to everyone across North Oxfordshire.
We have a brilliant healthcare facility right on our doorstep - this needs to be protected and enhanced. The John Radcliffe simply cannot cope with the increased demand; on Monday all non-urgent operations at the JR were once again cancelled and over Christmas, the hospital operated at Opel 3 – the highest level of warning.”
Pointing to the recent centralisation of Horton services, including the temporary downgrade of the Hospital’s maternity unit, which will see up to 1,000 extra births take place at the John Radcliffe every year due to mothers travelling down from Banbury, Eddie continues: “If the situation is bad now, there is potential for it to significantly worsen. There are population pressures in and around Oxfordshire and in North Oxfordshire in particular, we are seeing plenty of housing developments. All these residents will need hospital services at some point. Centralising acute care to Oxford is not the answer. These services should remain at the Horton.
The more Banbury residents bang that drum, the greater our chance of the Trust recognising our concerns. I urge everyone to respond.”
The consultation comes after months of protests in Banbury following the downgrade of Horton services. According to the Clinical Commissioning Group and Oxfordshire University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, the changes proposed to the Horton would mean that patients can be seen and treated closer to home.
In response to this claim, Deddington County Councillor Arash Fatemian, whose recent motion demanding no further services be centralised from Banbury to the JR was passed unanimously by County Hall, says: “We share the anger of local residents; no one wants to see the Horton downgraded. This consultation is an opportunity to change the direction of travel. And while we welcome Banbury patients being treated in Banbury, this should not be at the expense of vital acute service provision being transferred to Oxford.
We are concerned that this consultation asks us to comment on the future of Horton services when some of the proposals have ALREADY been implemented - like the downgrade of maternity to a midwife-led unit and the closure of Horton beds. This is fundamentally wrong. I praise Victoria Prentis for raising this matter in Parliament with her recent 10 Minute Rule Bill. But it is no wonder that Banbury’s residents have lost confidence in the Trust.
I remain hopeful that a solution for the Horton’s acute service provision can be found. The Trust simply cannot keep ignoring legitimate local concerns particularly around the issues of patient safety and travel times from Banbury to the JR. Banbury Conservatives will remain a strong voice for residents.”
As part of the consultation, members of the public will be encouraged to attend public meetings. The first of these will be held in Banbury on Thursday 26 January. To book your place at the please visit: consult.oxfordshireccg.nhs.uk/consult.ti/BigconsultationPhase1/view?objectId=299667#299667