CROYDON University Hospital is under threat again. The latest NHS consultation includes, as an option, closing the hospital's A&E and maternity units. Although this is not the NHS's preferred option, it's important that the entire community in Croydon makes it clear that we will not accept the closure of these vital services.
Croydon has the biggest population of any borough in London. We need a hospital in our area that delivers the full range of services. By their very nature, A&E units need to be close to where people live, so that ambulance journey times are as short as possible when dealing with emergency medical situations. Maternity units also need to be close to the population they serve – expectant mothers and their partners should not be expected to travel long distances to access services that will ensure their child enters the world as healthily as possible.
Before the General Election, David Cameron said there would be no more top-down reorganisations of the NHS if he became Prime Minister. Not only did he impose the biggest top-down reorganisation in the history of the health service, but he has now sanctioned a major upheaval in hospital services that puts Croydon at risk again.
