Some worrying & frightening facts!

Posted By: Jean Ashworth
Date Posted: 17/05/2011

On the 25th June we are to lose our Maternity & Children’s Inpatient services forcing people again to travel further away, these wards are being moved to temporary wards at Oldham at a cost of £750.000 until the new unit is built which could be up to 12 to 18 months.

Our Staff on the  Special Care Baby Unit for seriously ill babies are being moved to St Mary’s in Manchester because there isn't enough room for them at Oldham they are being told they have to go on secondment for 12, 6 or 3 months and are being threatened with redundancy if they don't comply! And St Mary's want secondment places for their own staff  so this is bound to cause friction these are not the plans Rochdale was given at the start of the reconfiguration, 

The safest idea would have been to stay put until the new unit at the Royal Oldham is completed rather than all these so called temporary moves at a huge cost and a lot of added distress caused for all concerned.

Trauma & Orthopaedics are moving out of Fairfield permanently where are these patients expected to go as no extra beds have been allocated?

Also we were promised a Cardiac Centre of Excellence which we are told is not now feasible due to the removal of A&E yet Healthy Futures are still going ahead with a public consultation 12 weeks again a complete waste of NHS funding!

None of the other hospitals Oldham, Manchester or Fairfield can cope with the situation that has been forced on them by these downgrading of our services Ambulances are queuing at the doors and people are suffering in this Borough for being ill and in need of care. My 85 year old Mum was woken up on Coronary Care Unit Royal Oldham at 2 am because they needed her bed it was late afternoon before they settled her onto another ward this isn’t the fault of the hard working staff it is the appalling circumstances they have been forced into.

Staff are being told parking permits have gone up because of the extra spaces, lighting and security costs what a joke try parking at Oldham or Manchester either as a visitor, patient or member of staff it is a nightmare some staff have to leave home an hour earlier than needed just to try to find a space near to were they work not on a side street which is quite frightening walking back to your car after a late shift.

Everyday I receive calls regarding someone who has suffered due to needing care in this borough because this trust are rushing and pushing these closures through without adequate or easy accessible care or transport services in place not to mention consultation!