Closing Maternity Unit

[Punnet]

Have just seen in my local press they have temporarily closed the local maternity unit- possibility of it staying that way. That means there will be no help for about 12 miles. They saved my life there- when the 'Big' hospital (to be preceise Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton) didn't understand I was really ill with DS1, the local Mary Stanley Unit managed to get admitted via ambulance- ds was born next day after induction, placenta failing with pre-eclampsia, I was borderline eclamptic.

Sorry, I am just really angry. They already took our casualty, faced 45 minute drive with badly bleeding 20 month old this am to get help as they won't see potential head injuries here (he's OK, a few stitches). There are 30,000 of us in this damn town- what's going on?

[starlover]

I know the feeling punnet.
They closed the maternity unit in our nearest hospital ages ago, and have just closed a&e. We have 2 other hosps about same distance away as each other and one of those is also having maternity and a&e closed!!!!!

It's insane as the other hospital is already struggling to cope with the extra people it has to see...

[Miaou]

We had a similar problem here (in the Highlands). There was a threat of closure to our hospital (9 miles from where I live), leaving us to travel....get this.... 70 miles to our nearest hospital !!! Our hospital is the nearest one to Ben Nevis, so as you can imagine it deals with many very critical patients each year. There was a huge campaign last year - a public meeting was held in a local hall to discuss the closure, and 2000 people turned up! Total population of the town the hospital is in ... about 10,000...

[suedonim]

Sadly, this is happening all over the place. Perth Royal Infirmary has been downgraded to MW Unit so mums-to-be with complications are having to travel 70 miles along appalling roads to reach dundee, while the community in Caithness has fought to keep its Mat Unit open. If that closes there will be journeys of over 100 miles for some. Great when you're in labour, maybe in winter with a blizzard howling.

[Punnet]

Well, I just read that the nearest big hospital can't cope with numbers so we might have to go to Exeter. 45 miles or thereabouts? Could you imagine the M5 Somerset to Exeter on a Summer Saturday? Last time I tried it took me 2 and a 1/2 hours!!!