Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (HHFT) has reportedly confirmed its intention to close the Urgent Care Centre at Mount Vernon Hospital in Northwood.
An article in the May edition of Northwood & Ruislip News reported that rumours over the closure of the centre prompted the launch of a petition titled Save Mount Vernon’s Urgent Care Unit.
David Simmonds CBE, MP for Northwood, Ruislip and Pinner, received assurances from HHFT that there were no plans to close the unit.
However, last month, Mr Simmonds MP shared that HHFT has decided “to press ahead with the closure”.
A HHFT board document, which has been shared with Northwood & Ruislip News, reveals plans to relocate the service from Mount Vernon to the Urgent Treatment Centre at Hillingdon Hospital.
The document states: “We are responding to financial pressures, growing patient demand, and widening health inequalities, and we now must make carefully considered and equitable decisions about how we deliver care. Reconfiguring and fully optimising our services is no longer optional – it is essential to sustain safe, high-quality, and equitable healthcare for our local community.”
It adds that consolidating services at Hillingdon Hospital would improve access for underserved populations and deliver cost savings of £1million per year.
In a letter to Health Secretary Wes Streeting MP, Mr Simmonds MP wrote: “This announcement has caused widespread concern and anger. More than 20,000 residents have now signed a petition calling for the closure to be stopped, a clear and overwhelming expression of public opposition.
“The closure directly contradicts the principles of the NHS 10-Year Plan, which emphasises the importance of delivering care closer to home and relieving pressure on A&E departments. It also flies in the face of assurances given by the previous government about extending funding and support for minor injuries units as a key component of urgent and emergency care provision.
“Mount Vernon’s Urgent Care Centre is one of the best-performing services of its kind nationally. To lose it would be a serious setback for patient care, local capacity and public confidence in the health system.”
On Thursday, July 24, the MP welcomed Leader of the Opposition Kemi Badenoch to Northwood to back the Save Mount Vernon Urgent Care Centre campaign.
Speaking in a video posted on social media, Mrs Badenoch MP said: “David is a fantastic constituency MP and I want everyone to please support his campaign and his petition. Tens of thousands of people have already signed to support the urgent care centre.”
To view the petition, visit www.hillingdonconservatives.org/savemountvernon
HHFT has been contacted for comment.
Photo credit: Google Maps
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