Concerns have been raised about the future of Bishop’s Castle Community Hospital, five weeks after it was temporarily closed due to staffing issues.
Councillors, parish councils and residents recently had the opportunity to hear more from Shropshire Community NHS Trust.
Councillor Ruth Houghton for Bishop’s Castle said: “Unfortunately we didn’t hear anything new although it was stated that in hindsight the hospital should perhaps have closed earlier due to the significant staff shortages.
“As a community, we could have shared job adverts and worked with the Trust to address the issue before the decision to close, albeit on a temporary basis, was made.
“It is apparent that the dedicated staff team went above and beyond what is required of them to keep the beds open for as long as they did”
“What is needed now is clarity on the feasibility options, timescales for the completion of these and a clear timetable with measurable milestones for the recruitment of staff to enable the hospital to re-open as soon as possible”.
Cllr Houghton added: “Additional beds over the winter period are always needed to facilitate hospital discharges and prevent admissions to acute beds, these 17 beds though don’t help south-west Shropshire at all. People living in our local community will still have to travel significant distances to visit family and friends”
A spokesperson for Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust: “Bishop’s Castle Community Hospital was temporarily closed on safety grounds on the 1 November 2021. From the 2 November 2021 a team have been based at the site providing an enhanced community offer to support local residents, working in partnership with both the local GP surgery and the Primary Care Network.”
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