THE boss of Poole Hospital has spoken out in a last-ditch attempt to keep A&E services as time runs out for the public to have their say on controversial health plans.

In an exclusive interview with the Daily Echo, CEO Debbie Fleming said Poole was much better placed as the county’s major emergency centre than the preferred Royal Bournemouth Hospital because moving services would lead to disruption and traffic chaos.

Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group’s preferred proposals in its Clinical Services Review mean Poole Hospital A&E would be replaced by an urgent care centre staffed by GPs and nurses.

It means in future no ‘blue light’ ambulances would go to Poole and there would no longer be any emergency inpatient services on site. Maternity and paediatric services as well as other emergency specialities such as trauma, orthopaedics and cardiology would be moved to a major emergency centre in Bournemouth.

Instead, Poole would become the county’s major planned care hospital providing outpatient services, diagnostic services, ambulatory care and routine elective procedures as well as being developed as a ‘community hub with beds’ to provide a range of community services.

She said: “Our issue is we believe Poole should be the major emergency site. Poole’s roots have always been in major emergency care. We are already one of the country’s successful trauma units. Our people downstairs are used to the motorbike crashes, the car crashes, the major emergencies and so the majority of ambulances arrive here in Poole, not Bournemouth.

“With a trauma unit, there are a lot of specialities that work alongside it, like paediatrics.

“If we make the change over, it’s much more disruptive. There is a whole list of specialists here that would have to move and change base and teams would have to be dismantled. Meanwhile Bournemouth do a lot of planned work and that would have to come here.”

Mrs Fleming also spoke out to refute Bournemouth’s claim people would experience fewer traffic issues if it became the major centre because it services the biggest concentration of the population.

“We feel very strongly that Poole is much easier to get to in Dorset than Bournemouth,” she said.

“Though Poole and Bournemouth aren’t that far apart, you know if you are from West Dorset and you travel, it can be really difficult to travel that distance.

“Poole has got three major roads leading into it. Bournemouth has got one. That makes a big difference to access.

“We passionately believe if everyone looks at Dorset as a whole, not just the East, Poole is the right place to be the major emergency hospital.”

The chief executive said whatever happens her team will support the changes but pleaded for residents to have their say on Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group’s Clinical Services Review before the deadline on February 28.

“Long term none of the three hospitals in Dorset are sustainable. We are all spending more money each month than we have coming in. That’s why we need the CSR.

“People keep talking about the future but it has started now. The demand is greater than we can cope with as we are now so what we do need to do is to change together because we cannot go on as we are.

“The pressures on the health service plan are never ending. With the CSR, we have the beginnings of a plan to take things forward and I do believe in that plan.

“We need to get more services in the community and be much more proactive so when patients go to their GP, they can get swift access and proactive care. That will take the pressure off the hospital.

“We only want people coming in when they need to be here and going back out again into their own home as soon as possible.

“Whatever happens, the worst thing we can do is to stay and do nothing.

“We are very clear wherever it lands we will support that outcome because clearly we need to do something.

“We would of course work with Bournemouth in the interest of our patients. In my view and the view of a lot of our clinicians though, that is the second best option, not the best option.

“Now we just want people to voice their opinions because many people just aren’t responding.”

Dr Gary Cumberbatch, clinical director for emergency services at Poole Hospital, added: “As clinicians we have concerns that many of the general public are still to respond.

“It’s vitally important the public understands the significant effects on hospital services the outcome of this review will have and, with the public consultation period ending soon, we urge the public to look closely at the detail of the proposed changes and to make their views known.”

For more information go to dorsetsvision.nhs.uk