'We've been let down over hospital plans'
In January 2007, health bosses said West Cornwall Hospital, Penzance, would have a 24-hour consultant-led A&E unit – the plan was later downgraded to a staff grade doctor leading the department.
But by April this year, health chiefs had announced the unit would be headed by a nurse practitioner from 11pm to 9am.
Last night, about 300 people crammed into St John's Hall, Penzance, to hear health bosses outline the latest plans for the hospital.
Andrew George, West Cornwall MP, Peter Colclough, chief executive of Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, and Martin Watts, chairman of the trust, made up a panel of 10 speakers.
The panel presented and then discussed the trust's recently published Draft Strategic Plan 2010-2014.
The hospital's future has been the subject of controversy dating back to 2002 when more than 20,000 people marched through the streets to vent their anger over plans drawn up by the then-West Cornwall Primary Care Trust to downgrade it.
Members of the audience expressed anger over the trust's refusal to give the hospital what was originally promised.
Graham Webster, vice-chairman of Health Initiative Cornwall, said: "The trust has let us down.
"We have been campaigning for many years for proper 24-hour, seven days a week doctor-led A&E cover. They are selling us very short.
"This trust strategic plan is a missed opportunity.
"Although there are some very good things in it, there's a lot that's not so good. It is a bit short on detail."
When asked how the wider community would view the new document, Mr Webster replied: "With suspicion. The management board of the trust has yet to prove itself.
"Over the past few years, it has stumbled from crisis to crisis and they have a lot of work to do."
The audience was told that over the next five years, there would be a number of improvements to services including an eye treatment service, skin cancer services, chronic pain services, a third operating theatre, new outpatients department and an improved renal dialysis unit.
Peter Colclough, chief executive of the Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "This plan has been developed with the help of our clinicians at its heart. Extensive clinical discussions with all our specialities have informed our work and these will continue as we develop our plans in greater details over the next three months."
The final plan will be completed by April 1 next year.
Andrew George said it was important to fight to keep hospital services that the community deserved. "The hospital has significantly changed its status in the last two years.
"There are elements of this plan which should be welcomed – particularly the extension of clinics which should be capable of treating more patients and providing a wider range of diagnostic facilities.
"However, we should still press the trust on its longer-term vision for the future of West Cornwall Hospital and to ensure patients are treated closer to home. The Government wants Cornwall to absorb another 70,000 houses in the next 16 years. Penwith alone would have to build the equivalent of another Penzance.
"I receive many complaints from local patients who have been referred to clinics in Truro when they could have been seen at West Cornwall. The trust acknowledge that this should be put right.
"There are many others – often elderly or vulnerable – who have been taken by ambulance to the A&E at Truro and discharged in the small hours by taxi to Penwith at the cost of over £50 because no other transport is available."
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