Express & Star comment: Preserving County Hospital is so crucial
It is absolutely vital that the future of the County Hospital in Stafford is preserved.
While the trust that runs it is making all the right noises in terms of looking at ways to make the site financially viable, future decisions must not be too heavily influenced by concerns over money.
If ever a hospital has seen the tragic consequences of placing finances above patient care, then it is this one.
It is fair to say that the Weston Road site is yet to fully recover from the scandal that saw hundreds of unnecessary deaths in the mid-2000s.
The knock on effect is still being felt at hospitals in Wolverhampton, Walsall and Stoke, which are having to pick up the pieces.
In their vision for 2025, Trust bosses have acknowledged that more needs to be done with the site.
But many will question why in their plans to make greater use of what, on paper at least, is a modern facility, there is no talk of a return to a 24-hour A&E department.
The removal of this absolutely crucial service from a community that has grown rapidly over the last few years remains a great concern.
Stafford, and its surrounding areas, needs a 24-hour service to operate from its local hospital.
We acknowledge that the Trust is under financial pressure. The fact that it is facing a loss of £71 million over 2017/18 is a worry in itself.
However, cancer targets are being missed, A&E waiting times are not where they should be, and too many patients are being kept waiting on trollies in corridors.
It is undoubtedly a huge task for chief executive Paula Clark, formerly boss at Russells Hall Hospital in Dudley.
But it is one where patient care must be prioritised over resolving the financial mess that the University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust finds itself in.
For all the grand talk of being a 'world class' hospital, the immediate focus should be on getting the basics right.
That means the return of 24-hour A&E services for a start.
It must also mean that the hospital remains open come what may.
Everyone in the community, from the politicians, to the public, to this newspaper, must remain vigilant to ensure there is no prospect of it closing.
