LOCAL stroke services which are currently split between at Redditch's Alexandra Hospital and the Worcestershire Royal could all be based in Worcester under a controversial proposal to be discussed on Tuesday (May 22).
Although a number of options were outlined for the meeting of the Worcestershire Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee (HOSC), the recommendation is to centralise the services for the whole county in Worcester, removing those now based in Redditch.
Alternatives included keeping the provision the way it is at the moment, split between Redditch and Worcester, and one to move them all to the Alex.
It follows a review of local hospital-based stroke services to see how they could be improved for the whole county.
Bromsgrove MP Sajid Javid slammed the decision, saying Redditch would have been a better option than Worcester.
"If stroke services are to be centralised, then the Alexandra Hospital is surely the best option.
"It would build upon local established capacity for stroke care, particularly with the country's first specialist Life After Stroke Centre nearby, and help build a centre of excellence in this field in Worcestershire."
Simon Hairsnape is the Chief Operating Officer for Wyre Forest Clinical Commissioning Group and Redditch and Bromsgrove Clinical Commissioning Group.
He said the recommendation was made after a very thorough review process involving patients, senior clinicians, GPs and external clinical advisers, who considered a number of different options.
"Their recommended option is that acute stroke services should centralised at Worcestershire Royal Hospital, as this would lead to an improvement in the clinical effectiveness of the service and would reduce the amount of time patients would need to spend in hospital.
Visit link:
Stroke services for county to be moved to Worcester