Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Hospital must be in easy reach of us all
While many of the big issues that occur within my constituency mean I have to weigh up the opinions of some with the benefits for others before taking a stance, the announcement from NHS Lanarkshire that Gartcosh is the early leading contender as the new location for University Hospital Monklands is not one of them.
Throughout the talks that my elected colleagues and I have had with the health board we were always assured that the new hospital, if not on the present site, was to be located within the Monklands area.
Now it seems that they meant the current University Hospital Monklands catchment area; this is not the same thing at all.
I understand that there is a huge push to promote the “northern corridor” of North Lanarkshire but that should not be done to the detriment of the health of many in the central cordon of the area.
How is someone from Salsburgh or Longriggend with no means of transport except buses or taxis supposed to get to Gartcosh?
For a routine, midweek appointment you could be talking a travel time of over one hour, if the buses are on time; but what about at the weekend when many buses run reduced timetables and getting a taxi could mean a long wait and a costly journey?
The town centre location, half-way between Airdrie and Coatbridge is ideally placed for buses and trains.
Yes, there is a problem with parking, but that can be addressed as part of the greater redevelopment plan.
There were 37 proposed alternative sites for the hospital but they seem to have been dismissed out of hand, and only Glenmavis and Gartcosh considered.
I want to see all the other sites openly discussed and each one’s merits balanced with their negative points; I’m sure that there must be one that is a better fit.
The Gartcosh site is so close to Glasgow that I am worried any new facility built there will be used as an overspill for the Royal Infirmary, which is only 10 to 15 minutes away, meaning longer waiting times for the people of Monklands.
I have had a good many constituents contact me regarding this proposal and they are not at all happy that NHS Lanarkshire seem to be ignoring their views.
The majority want the hospital to stay on its existing site; some feel that if it has to move then Glenmavis is the best option but none want the move to Gartcosh.
Now I know that not everyone uses social media but having read the comments on several sites over the past few weeks, that opinion is consistent across North Lanarkshire.
Alex Neil MSP and I are meeting with the NHS Lanarkshire chief executive and chairperson to put forward our view that, if the original site cannot be developed – and we have not had any reasons why not – then the new hospital must remain somewhere close to the current site and in easy reach of all it will serve.
My constituents, and NHS Lanarkshire, can rest assured that, before a final decision is taken, I will fight tooth and nail for that to happen.
The new hospital must remain close to the current site...rest assured I will fight tooth and nail for that to happen