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ECCLES MP Ian Stewart spoke against axing Hope Hospital’s maternity services at the Advertiser’s Hands Off Hope rally
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MP slams Hope decision process

ECCLES MP Ian Stewart says a 'flawed consultation process' is partly to blame for the controversial decision to axe maternity services at Hope Hospital.

The MP has been a vocal opponent of the Making It Better plans to shut the maternity and neonatal intensive care units at Hope and spoke out against the proposals at the Advertiser's Hands Off Hope rally last March.

Now that Health Secretary Alan Johnson has backed the plans, Mr Stewart has raised further criticisms and is doubtful that plans for a stand alone midwife-led unit would be deemed safe enough at the Eccles Old Road site.

He said: "The chair of the Salford Royal Hospitals Trust Councillor Margaret Morris said this is 'a bitter disappointment'. I agree with her as this means Hope loses its specialist clinician led maternity service.

"The IRP has suggested that the Hope Trust Board explores the possibility of having a stand-alone midwife-led unit.

"This will pose problems for the Hope Trust Board as we already have a midwife-led unit at Hope but this is currently side by side with the other clinician-led services such as the 24-hour medical obstetrics unit.

"If you remove the clinician-led specialist services then the Trust Board will have to satisfy itself about the safety of having only a stand-alone midwife-led service."

Mr Stewart, who is facing an imminent battle with Salford MP Hazel Blears for the Salford seat following constituency boundary changes, added: "I believe that this situation has, in part, been brought about by; the NHS North West Regions decision to block the setting up of a paediatrics unit at Hope in 1998, the failure of Salford Primary Care Trust to take a strong enough line at the beginning of the process and the Joint Greater Manchester PCTs flawed consultation process.

"This cannot currently be called Making It Better for the people of Salford. I will continue to work with the Hope Trust, the city council, community and trade union support groups and others to get the best possible settlement."

The Independent Reconfiguration Panel which carried out the review into the proposals on behalf of the Health Secretary says thorough consultation was done.

A spokesman said: "The IRP consulted with interested parties from all sides of the debate. Over 60 separate meetings were held and a number of site visits were made."

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