Patient questions out-of-town hospital trips

A woman has questioned why she was asked to travel out of town to attend medical appointments while the status of her local hospital remains undecided.

Alison Medcalf, from Goole, East Yorkshire, said being sent to Scunthorpe for appointments, rather than the hospital five minutes from her home, had caused her additional "stress".

A public consultation is being staged on the future of Goole and District Hospital and about 300 people shared their views at the first of two drop-in sessions this week.

Ivan McConnell, of NHS Humber Health Partnership, said no decisions had been made and "all options available" would be considered, but the hospital would not be closing.

Ms Medcalf said she had abandoned her car at Scunthorpe General Hospital after driving around the car park for an hour trying to find a space for her appointment.

She said she had left it on double-yellow lines, concerned that if she missed her appointment the consultant might not see her again.

Ms Medcalf added that her work as a GP made her aware that people from Goole were being given appointments at Scunthorpe, which is more than 25 miles from Goole, when they could be held at their local hospital.

And she said that when she had another appointment made for her at Scunthorpe and asked why it could not be in Goole, her wish was granted – and the appointment date was sooner than it would have been at Scunthorpe.

On arrival at Goole and District Hospital, she said it looked like a "ghost town", with only one other patient there and empty waiting rooms.

People who attended this week's drop-in session at The Courtyard in Goole said they did not want services moved to Grimsby, Hull or Scunthorpe because of the difficulty getting there by public transport.

Save Goole Hospital Action Group said it still had "grave concerns" after staff told the BBC in December that the hospital trust told them wards would be closed.

Michaela Kenning, from the group, said there were worries about suggestions that empty parts of the hospital could be rented out to libraries or community groups.

"That doesn't put patients in beds. I just don't think you need an expensive project like this [consultation drop-in] to tell you the obvious, which is that the population of Goole and surrounding areas are better cared for in our local hospital," she said.

Mr McConnell said every idea put forward during the consultation process would be considered, but the NHS had to consider how best to meet patients' needs without "an infinite budget".

He said: "That's why we are engaging with the population to get their views as to what's best for them. The hospital is not closing."

Humber Health Partnership previously said it would look at appointment scheduling to help people travelling from Goole to other hospital sites.

NHS Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board, which is running the consultation process, said there would be another drop-in session next month.

There is also a survey online.

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