Maternity and A&E units shut in London hospital

12 April 2012

A London hospital today became the first to shut two of its busiest departments under the Coalition.

Health chiefs announced that Queen Mary's in Sidcup is to permanently close its A&E and maternity units.

The hospital, which serves more than a million people in south-east London, has already temporarily shut both departments due to staff and medical supply shortages.

But now, after a key review recommended it remain closed, the capital's overarching health authority, NHS London, rubber-stamped the decision. Patients who would normally use Queen Mary's will be forced to travel to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich or the Princess Royal in Farnborough — both six miles away.

Campaigners who have fought a long battle against the closure today said it could put lives at risk.

An influential group of MPs earlier attacked the Health Secretary's plans to make £20 billion of savings over the next four years, questioning whether it could adversely affect patient care.

The Health Select Committee said Andrew Lansley's plans are on a scale never seen before and represented a "significant challenge" for the NHS, which would be tested "to the limit".

The cross-party committee was not convinced that present levels of social care could be maintained with the funding being made available.

Its chairman, Conservative MP Stephen Dorrell, said staff would probably face "bruising changes" as the NHS was redesigned.

The MPs' report also warned that the Government was not providing "a clear enough narrative" about how savings were to be made without hitting services.

It called on ministers to provide an estimate of how much money would be soaked up by reorganisation in the NHS which was creating uncertainty about budgets.

A spokesman for the Department of Health said: "Reform isn't an option, it's a necessity if we want to sustain and to improve NHS services."

A London hospital was today expected to become the first to close two of its busiest departments. The capital's health authority, NHS London, was due to announce whether Queen Mary's in Sidcup will permanently shut its A&E and maternity units.

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