More childrens hospitals
Conservatives plan more children's hospitals
A major new boost to child health care in Britain will be set in train by an incoming Conservative government, the party's health chief Andrew Lansley has promised.The Shadow Health Secretary has announced plans for five new children's hospitals to be built as a priority - In Leeds, Cambridge, Southampton, Nottingham and Derby. They will be funded from the Department of Health's £700 million capital allocation - using £100 million in each of the first three years of a Conservative administration.
The go ahead will follow a full review of the structure of children's hospital services across the UK.Announcing that five existing hospitals in Leeds, Nottingham, Derby, Cambridge and Southampton will be invited to bid for funding to support projects to bring their paediatric services together into a new children's hospital - providing enhanced capacity and a focus for the development of children's health services in their area - Mr Lansley declared:"After the election, we will initiate a review on the future configuration of children's health services.
Particular emphasis will be on how paediatric hospital services can maximise the contribution they make to the development of children's health services which are integrated and responsive to children's needs."Mr Lansley said a key purpose of the review would be to assess how children's hospitals can take responsibility for the whole patient pathway for children, with services reaching out into the community to support primary care with their specialist expertise.Key to the review will be the recruitment of more specialist paediatric staff to overcome existing shortages, particularly of surgeons as was recently highlighted by the Royal College of Surgeons.
Emphasising that capital funding will be directed to support children's hospital services right across the country, Mr Lansley stated: "The loss of 18 per cent of paediatric intensive care beds in just a two-year period when more children are being referred to specialist centres with ITU support, is another reason for this major shift of NHS priority in capital spending."
A major new boost to child health care in Britain will be set in train by an incoming Conservative government, the party's health chief Andrew Lansley has promised.The Shadow Health Secretary has announced plans for five new children's hospitals to be built as a priority - In Leeds, Cambridge, Southampton, Nottingham and Derby. They will be funded from the Department of Health's £700 million capital allocation - using £100 million in each of the first three years of a Conservative administration.
The go ahead will follow a full review of the structure of children's hospital services across the UK.Announcing that five existing hospitals in Leeds, Nottingham, Derby, Cambridge and Southampton will be invited to bid for funding to support projects to bring their paediatric services together into a new children's hospital - providing enhanced capacity and a focus for the development of children's health services in their area - Mr Lansley declared:"After the election, we will initiate a review on the future configuration of children's health services.
Particular emphasis will be on how paediatric hospital services can maximise the contribution they make to the development of children's health services which are integrated and responsive to children's needs."Mr Lansley said a key purpose of the review would be to assess how children's hospitals can take responsibility for the whole patient pathway for children, with services reaching out into the community to support primary care with their specialist expertise.Key to the review will be the recruitment of more specialist paediatric staff to overcome existing shortages, particularly of surgeons as was recently highlighted by the Royal College of Surgeons.
Emphasising that capital funding will be directed to support children's hospital services right across the country, Mr Lansley stated: "The loss of 18 per cent of paediatric intensive care beds in just a two-year period when more children are being referred to specialist centres with ITU support, is another reason for this major shift of NHS priority in capital spending."
<< Home