NHS Greater Glasgow and Clydebank is currently engaging with GPs, healthcare professionals and local stakeholders about the future of a service at the Vale of Leven Hospital. This opposes the Health secretary assuring the public that they would be involved in the process.
The community will not have a say in the future of a cuts-threatened Vale service, despite the health secretary being told they would.
The revelation about the GP out-of-hours service at the Vale of Leven Hospital came after the Lennox Herald quizzed the health board on the consultation over the unit, which it is recommended will only operate at weekends.
Dumbarton MSP Jackie Baillie branded the decision to exclude the public from the process as the health board “wriggling out of its responsibility”.
And hospital campaigner Jim Moohan urged chair John Brown to present plans to communities for scrutiny before they are implemented.
An NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde spokeswoman told us: “We are conducting a review to ensure we are able to maintain safe and sustainable out-of-hours provision for the whole population we serve.
“This process includes engagement with GPs, other healthcare professionals and local stakeholders and is already well underway.”
She added: “For the clarity of your readers it should be noted that this is not a public consultation process.”
Seven months ago health secretary Shona Robison told Jackie Baillie MSP at Holyrood: “We have been assured that the board will undertake meaningful engagement with the public to shape its future provision of out-of-hours services.”
This was again stressed by minister for public health and sport Aileen Campbell at the end of May.
She said the integrated joint board carrying out the review “will undertake extensive engagement with the community to shape a service that meets the needs of communities and is safe and sustainable in terms of human resources and finances.
“We expect nothing less than meaningful and robust engagement.”
The health board said the outcome of the consultation will be available in early to mid 2018 and insisted they are “doing everything we can to maintain the best services we can for our population”.
But the unit was shut at short notice on a Sunday twice recently and again unmanned for a few hours on Saturday night.
A health board spokeswoman said: “The service at the Vale of Leven Hospital was open for the majority of the weekend and our home visiting service was available throughout the whole of the weekend.
“For a few hours on Saturday evening, however, patients referred to the out-of-hours GP service were directed by NHS24 to the Royal Alexandra Hospital GP out-of-hours service.
“Whilst we continue to strive to fill every GP rota every week, we are also reviewing how best to deliver a sustainable GP out-of-hours service in West Dunbartonshire and across Greater Glasgow and Clyde in the longer term.”
Jackie Baillie said: “NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde is clearly trying to wriggle out of its responsibility to consult patients and the local community on changes to GP out-of-hours services.
“Local patients in Dumbarton, Vale of Leven, Helensburgh and Lomond will not stand for any attempt to downgrade services or slash opening hours.
“It’s time to give local people all the information and let patients have their say.
“The SNP government has made repeated promises in the Scottish Parliament about meaningful and extensive engagement and the health secretary should step in now to ensure that the board upholds these promises.”
Hospitalwatch chair Jim Moohan believes health board chair John Brown must hold public meetings in Dumbarton, Alexandria and Helensburgh once a draft proposal is drawn up on how the out-of-hours service will operate.
He said: “It is vital that they learn from their previous mistakes and engage with the public.
“That is the only way they will retain the trust and the credibility which they have gained following the decision regarding the maternity unit.”
The cuts-threatened unit at the Vale is being used as a model of how maternity services should be operated across Scotland.
Article originally appeared on Daily Record
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