Patients fighting plans to axe beds at a Glasgow hospital have one week left to persuade health bosses that the service should remain.
A public engagement exercise on proposals to shut the inpatient unit at the Centre for Integrative Care (CIC) will close one week today.
The health board wants to close the seven bed unit at the CIC as part of a plan to make savings of around £70million. A paediatric ward at the Royal Alexandra hospital in Paisley, maternity units in Inverclyde and Lightburn Hospital, in Glasgow’s East End are also facing closure.
A decision on the future of the CIC and some of the other threatened services is expected to be made before Christmas.
The centre, which is based on the Gartnavel Hospitals site, offers people with long term, chronic conditions a range of complementary therapies, to help patients manage their own condition.
Patients can be admitted for up to a week for inpatient treatment and say it eases pressure on other NHS services by reducing GP and hospital appointments and in some cases medication.
A decision is still to be taken on whether the loss of the inpatient unit qualifies as a major service change, which would require government approval. This will be made by the Scottish Health Council, whose role is to improve the way NHS boards involve patients in decisions made about health services.
NHSGGC has said it believes the changes proposed for the hospital meet the criteria for a minor service change.
A spokeswoman for the Scottish Health Council said: “We don’t have a date yet but we expect Scottish Health Council to feedback to the Scottish Government in the coming weeks.”
Campaigners have criticised the appointment of Dr Catriona Renfrew, director of planning for the board,as chair of a panel set up to hear the views of patients, which met last week at the hospital.
Catherine Hughes, who is leading the fight to save the service, said: “It should be an independent person. It should not be the person responsible for making the cuts.
“The whole consultation has been flawed from the start.”
Patients are calling for the decision to be postponed while a petition is going through the parliamentary process. The Health and Sport Committee has asked the Scottish Health Council to give evidence.
Article originally published by Evening Times
