HEALTH CHIEFS are planning to transfer Redditch’s nearest specialist stroke unit over to Evesham.
Bosses claim the eight-bed relocation of the service, at Bromsgrove’s Princess of Wales Community Hospital, is being done to improve services but the move will see Redditch patients and their families facing a round trip of 44 miles rather than 16 for treatment or to see loved ones.
The move comes after the county’s three stroke sites – in Bromsgrove, Evesham and Worcester – struggled to secure appropriate specialist consultants. As a result Evesham will now house 32 specialist stroke rehab beds.
Currently, stroke sufferers receive immediate treatment at the Worcestershire Royal’s Acute Stroke Unit before being transferred to one of the three specialist stroke rehabilitation wards. They are then discharged with support from the Community Stroke Service if needed.
The changes are expected to be introduced as soon as possible to support the wider system over winter when healthcare demand is highest.
Bernice Jones, regional director of The Stroke Association, said stroke patients needed to come to terms with its physical and emotional impact and were more likely to make a better recovery with specialist care from a co-ordinated team on a stroke unit and high quality rehabilitation.
She said the charity supported the decision but added: “I would like to see consideration in the future of a second stroke rehabilitation centre in the north of the county.
“Family support is hugely important to stroke survivors, and this would help ensure families and carers can visit their loved ones. “
Dr Carl Ellson, on behalf of the three Worcestershire CCGs, said the move would see patients have access to expert clinicians seven-days-a-week, helping them recover quicker and improving their long-term outcomes.
However the decision has alarmed local civic leaders and Redditch borough council leader Councillor Bill Hartnett is to write a joint letter with Coun Geoff Denaro, leader of Bromsgrove district council expressing their concern. Coun Hartnett said: “As far as I know there has been no consultation with the districts on this.”
