Dorset hospital chair quits over cuts (From Dorset Echo)
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Dorset hospital chair quits over cuts
8:40am Saturday 24th October 2009 in Campaigns By Daily Echo reporter
STANDING DOWN: Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Chairman Robin SeQueira
THE chairman of the trust that runs the Dorset County Hospital has quit the day after proposals to cut the maternity and special care baby units were revealed.
Robin SeQueira, who is chairman of the Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, stepped down 12 years of service.
His resignation came just days after revelations that the hospital may have to axe such services as maternity and its special care baby unit to plug a £7.1 million black hole.
Mr SeQueira said he was stepping down now because he did not want to oversee what he predicted will be a “difficult” period. He also predicted that several middle management positions and support staff posts will be axed.
Mr SeQueira said: “The scale of changes that the trust will have to face are fairly substantial and I did not want to preside over them.
“Hospitals like Dorset County are small district generals that don’t attempt to provide a whole range of specialist services, such as dermatology or gynaecology because we simply don’t have the amount of patients coming through the door to make these specialisms affordable to us.
“The health service is now very much business-based and you’ve got to have a certain number of people coming through the door to earn the cash you want.”
He added: “We suffer from what’s known as the market forces factor.
“It’s more costly to provide certain services in urban areas and these hospitals are given a premium for that.
“Dorset County Hospital has lost £4-6million a year to hospitals in Bournemouth and Poole and we’ve always had difficulty equating our income with our expenditure.
“The board is going to have to reshape the hospital with a more basic range of services.”
Comments(4)
John T
says...
10:40am Sat 24 Oct 09
Cyberbia
says...
10:47pm Sat 24 Oct 09
For years and years we've been told that Project 'X' has saved £X,000's amount, and cutting 'Y' has saved £X,000,000 off the budget, and by doing away with 'Z' has saved £kX,000,000 - but with all this money supposedly saved - why isn't things better.
The phrase - "Being Fleeced and Conned" is starting to come to mind!
beachhut
says...
11:16am Sun 25 Oct 09
I recently had to take my son to A&E, the pre ward was like a war zone, lots of people with different coloured tops, badges, clipboards, all walking with purpose but not seemingly doing anything. It was not until my son threw up for the second time, and I was left to dispose of it that someone in a blue suit asked if I needed any help, why do you think my son had been brought in by ambulance was my reply of course he needs help before he passes out.
We need hospital workers not lots of staff in sharp business suits.
idontknowifitistrue says...
9:42am Sat 24 Oct 09
'Dorset hospital chair quits over cuts' (:o))