HASLEMERE'S MP has warned that the future of Milford Hospital is hanging in the balance, just a week after reducing services at the Royal Surrey Hospital appeared to be ruled out. Jeremy Hunt, the MP for South West Surrey, this week called for the campaign to save the area's only dedicated rehabilitation centre to concentrate pressure on Surrey Primary Care Trust (PCT). Mr Hunt believes the recent announcement by Surrey PCT, which indicated services at the Guildford hospital would not be axed, could now put the future of Milford Hospital in doubt. He stressed the need for the battle to save Milford Hospital to step up a gear, if Surrey PCT is to be convinced that implementing the previous PCT's decision to pursue 'option one', which includes the closure of Milford Hospital, will mean local health services will suffer. Mr Hunt said: "Following last week's Surrey PCT Board meeting it now looks like the future of the Royal Surrey County Hospital's accident and emergency department is secure. "While this is excellent news, it could mean they try to press ahead with the closure of Milford Hospital. "This would be totally unacceptable as we have seen no evidence of the alternative provision promised in Milford's place, such as a local treatment centre for Godalming. "The previous PCT simply got their decision on Milford wrong - the new PCT must go back to the drawing board before a major mistake is made." In a statement Surrey PCT said: "Proposals around Milford Hospital were consulted on by the previous Guildford and Waverley PCT, as part of an overall plan for community hospital services across the area. Following the outcome of the consultation, Guildford and Waverley PCT took the decision to relocate 42 consultant-led specialist rehabilitation beds from Milford, along with other services, which would result in the closure of Milford Hospital. "This decision was subsequently reviewed independently and upheld as a legitimate decision. "At their board meeting on April 26 2006, Guildford and Waverley PCT also agreed that: any implementation would be delayed until it had been tested against the Surrey-wide review of Settings of Care. "However, there are a number of issues concerning the reprovision and improvement of these services that need to be resolved before the closure of the current facilities is implemented. We have already begun discussions with local people and other stakeholders as to how we can best proceed. "The survey of local GPs undertaken by the Milford Cross Party Group will be welcome input into this engagement process, and we look forward to receiving the findings in due course. "We are also aware of outline proposals to substantially increase the housing stock in this area, and we will be taking account of this in our discussions." In June this year Mr Hunt called on health bosses to confirm Milford Hospital would not be closed while health services across the county were reviewed. At the time he claimed Surrey PCT had refused to confirm Milford Hospital would not be axed, despite both the PCT and the Strategic Health Authority writing to Mr Hunt to say that would not happen until the NHS 'Fit for the Future' programme was completed. Last year Mr Hunt wrote to Strategic Health Authority chief executive Candy Morris raising his concerns about the future of Milford Hospital. He received a response confirming the 'option one' decision to close Milford Hospital "will now be tested against the Surrey-wide review and implementation will not take place until this has happened". However, a PCT Board meeting in Ewell in May, chief executive Chris Butler and the other board members refused to answer the question Mr Hunt had submitted, which called for them to give absolute confirmation Milford Hospital was safe. The written question submitted by Mr Hunt asked: "Given that the PCT has confirmed in writing that the closure of Milford Hospital will not be implemented until a decision on future of the Royal Surrey County Hospital has been made, could the chief executive confirm that in the interim period there will be no restriction or curtailing of services offered by Milford Hospital?" In response to his failure to receive an assurance, Mr Hunt said: "It is deeply concerning that the Surrey Primary Care Trust appears to be backtracking on written commitments made to me only six months ago. "While the threat of closure hangs over the Royal Surrey it would be utter madness to proceed with the closure of Milford Hospital, either openly or by running down services by stealth. "Surrey health bosses owe it to the thousands of residents who have campaigned against the closure of Milford to come clean on their intentions."
