The NHS is re-committing to a plan that would see the Mount Vernon Cancer Centre move from its site in Northwood to the general hospital in Watford, despite current budgetary issues.
The centre’s Programme Board unanimously designated the move to the Hertfordshire site as their preferred option for the future, with the board at West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust also reaffirming its commitment to the idea, as well as the general refurbishment of Watford General.
The plan was initially put forward in 2021 after a 2019 report described the unit as having a lack of staff, outdated equipment and dilapidated buildings.
In an August update to stakeholders, it was stated: “An independent clinical review that concluded services needed to be located on an acute hospital site – a main hospital with a range of medical services that are not available on the current site.
“Relocation to Watford would provide access to critical care beds and necessary medical support, and provides the least disruption to current patient travel times.”
Though the departure is the preferred option for many stakeholders, it is unknown when this will take place, with the Programme Board acknowledging that funding for such projects in the NHS is under immense pressure currently.
However, the board added that further delays to the move may make the recruiting and maintaining of a workforce at the centre increasingly harder.
The Mount Vernon hospital has been known as a centre specialising in cancer treatment for decades, with the Marie Curie Hospital, Gray Cancer Institute and Lynda Jackson Macmillan Centre for cancer support all moving their premises or being opened there.
0 Comments