THE campaign to save Haslemere's Hospital beds from the chop has begun. Health chiefs have been accused of putting finances before health care, and campaigners are urging residents to do all they can to fight the plans. The consultation document examining five scenarios for a shake-up of Waverley's health services, was formally agreed by Guildford and Waverley Primary Care Trust, which runs the borough's community hospitals, last Thursday. Seven scenarios were originally considered by the cash-strapped trust, but two have been discounted - including maintaining the status quo. The other was an alternative option put forward by a cross- community group, but the trust has discounted it for being costly and not modernising services. As previously reported by The Herald, three out of the five remaining options propose the closure of all of the in-patient beds at Haslemere Hospital. Overall, the number of beds in the borough will reduce from 172 to between 137 and 140, depending on which option is chosen, with the axe hanging over beds in Haslemere, Milford, Cranleigh and Farnham. Four of the five options also propose that Haslemere has a new day hospital with increased services for patients. However, this would not go ahead if the trust decided to save Milford Hospital from the chop, as its proposed closure is included in all but one of the options. If Milford were to close, its rehabilitation beds and services would go either to the Royal Surrey, Farnham Hospital, or a combination of both. If the PCT chooses to keep the Milford site and develop its services, this would be at the expense of a day hospital for Haslemere. Haslemere's League of Friends met on Monday and attacked the PCT's proposals as putting money before patients. "In the five proposals, only two would see beds remain at Haslemere. One would see all beds close and there would be no day hospital either," said chairman Dr Nicky Lee. "The league are concerned that there will be no beds for our vulnerable elderly, whether recovering after operations or recuperating from serious illness. "The reason for closing the beds is not clinical but financial and the PCT is putting the budget before health care." Dr Lee explained that with the cuts proposed, the Friends fear that the current level of service offered can not be maintained. This is because Haslemere's beds are almost at capacity most of the time; there is no alternative service to replace the loss of beds and Haslemere has the highest proportion of over 85s in the area. The Friends have also criticised the PCT's plans to create a local treatment centre in Godalming in four of the options - the exception being if Milford were to remain open. Dr Lee said that the "PCT proposes to spend vast sums of money on a new facility in Godalming, which is close to the acute hospital, and a walk-in facility at the Royal Surrey Hospital". "This makes a nonsense of the cost-cutting process," she said. However, the trust has defended its plans, explaining that they have been put forward as part of an overall plan to make massive savings on the orders of the government. It has to plug a gap of around £16 million over the next two years and the proposals for the community hospitals could save up to £2 million. "We remain committed to ensuring that people have fast, fair, and appropriate access to NHS services and to providing the best possible care to the local population," said interim chief executive Jane Dale. "However, we are also required to ensure that we provide services that are both affordable and sustainable in the future. That is what our consultation document sets out and we look forward to receiving comments on our proposals for change." The chief executive said that there would be extra resources pumped into supporting patients in the home and that the remaining beds would be used in new ways to reduce admissions into acute hospitals. She said that the trust welcomes new ideas and urged residents to attend one of a series of meetings where the plans will be outlined. "We are open to flexibilities regarding the options proposed, including the proposed use of beds," she said, "although we will need to ensure that provision is evidence-based and provides optimal outcomes for individual people, enables substantial recurrent financial savings, that services can be used flexibly over time, that there is a reduction in overall bed numbers in line with the options proposed, and that the changes can be implemented no later than March 2008. "I personally want to encourage people to attend the public meetings as we want to listen to as many, and as wide a range of views, as possible during this consultation. "If you have a local group and would like a PCT representative to come along and discuss the consultation, you can contact Laura Dennett on 01252 305855." The consultation document is available on the PCT's website at http://www.gwpct.nhs.uk">www.gwpct.nhs.uk. The consultation ends on February 28, 2006. Local MPs Jeremy Hunt and Anne Milton have secured an emergency meeting with Health Minister Caroline Flint to discuss the issues surrounding the PCT's consultation. They decided to press for the meeting following the PCT's earlier decision to ignore Surrey County Council's health scrutiny committee recommendation to postpone the closure of 51 step down beds as a "temporary emergency measure".

Public consultation meetings:

December 5 - Rodborough Secondary School, Milford. 6 pm. December 9 - Godalming Baptist Church. 10-30 am. December 19 - Farnham Maltings, Farnham. 2 pm. January 16 - Cranleigh Arts Centre, Cranleigh. 6 pm. January 19 - Haslemere Hall, Haslemere. 2 pm. January 24 - St Saviour's Church, Guildford. 10-30 am.