A STAFF crisis has forced health chiefs to close 10 beds at Milford Hospital and "transfer" them to Farnham Hospital. It is feared that this may sound the death knell for the threatened hospital if it is unable to bounce back from this latest setback. Vacancies at the rehabilitation hospital have risen to 42 per cent and it does not have the staff to cope with the present number of patients. In a report due to be received yesterday, (Thursday) health chiefs were due to hear that uncertainty over the future of the hospital has had an adverse affect on recruiting staff. This led to the decision to stop new admissions for the 10 beds. The board of the Guildford and Waverley Primary Care Trust was due to hear that the "critical" staffing levels mean that there is an "excessive use" of agency staff who are unfamiliar with the speciality of elderly rehabilitation. Last month, the trust, which runs the 50-bed hospital, was unable to find the staff to fill 53 shifts and the situation was expected to worsen over the summer. On top of this, overtime and sickness rates have increased and there are not enough experienced staff. To cope with the crisis, the decision was taken last week to suspend admissions to 10 beds on Oak Ward and plan "for the re-provision of the service at Farnham Hospital and centre for health during August". The PCT is intending to reopen six nurse-led beds at Farnham Hospital and re-use them as rehabilitation beds. The remaining lost beds would be "found" by converting four existing beds at Farnham into consultant-led rehabilitation beds to meet the need. There are no plans to increase the number of staff at Farnham Hospital to cope with the six new patients. The remaining staff at Milford Hospital are to be consolidated and work on its two remaining wards. A statement from the PCT said that the "urgent action has been taken in the light of unsatisfactory staffing levels". "In recent weeks there has been undue pressure on staff, who are now often working excessive hours, and sickness rates are increasing," it said. Further details about the new arrangements were expected to be outlined at yesterday's meeting. However, the news has not been well received by campaigners fighting for the future of the hospital. As previously reported by The Herald, the cash- strapped PCT is looking at the future of the hospital, including closing it, in a bid to reduce its financial deficit. Added pressure to close the hospital has been heaped on the PCT by the government, which has sent a letter to it urging it to get its finances in order. In the last financial year it incurred a financial deficit of £5.9 million. A statement from the Milford Joint Campaign Group, led by South West Surrey MP Jeremy Hunt and campaigner Simon Cordon, said it had reacted with "dismay and anger" to the news. It feared that the PCT's action could seal the fate of the hospital which will be unable to recover from the bed closure. "This is death by a thousand cuts for Milford, and we utterly deplore this decision," its statement said. "The PCT must accept that its own failure to resolve Milford's future lies behind the staffing crisis at the hospital." The campaign group urged the PCT to continue to work with it to find a future for the hospital and prevent its closure. "We want to work closely with the new PCT acting chief executive Jane Dale to secure a viable long- term future for the hospital," it said. "With the right visionary leadership, Milford can not just survive, it can prosper for many years to come. "We just hope that Ms Dale comes to the discussions with an open mind."
