Hospital services shake-up
CHANGES are being made to the NHS in Newcastle which will see the world renowned Freeman Hospital’s baby heart unit switch to the city’s RVI.
Hospital chiefs yesterday launched the major plan that will eventually see services and operations transferred from the Freeman to the Royal Victoria Infirmary.
A national review of child congenital heart disease services protected the renowned service at the Freeman – but only until 2021, by which time major changes must be made.
They will start with the recruitment of additional staff and go on to the switching of staff, patients and services from the Freeman to the Great North Children’s Hospital and the RVI.
The Freeman has long been wellknown for infant cardiology treatment.
The UK’s first successful heart transplant for a child was performed at the hospital in 1987.
But the long-running review of services by NHS England, which concluded last November, only guaranteed that services would stay in Newcastle until 2021.
The city was among several trusts required to make changes in order to hold on to services after that time.
Failure to do so could mean the services being moved elsewhere.
Dame Jackie Daniel, chief executive of the trust, admitted the move from the Freeman to the RVI would be “costly, disruptive and time-consuming” - but said it would ultimately be in the best interests of patients.
She said: “We know we provide outstanding care to patients who need our congenital heart disease services, and we provide a unique range of services to adults and children with congenital heart disease.
“We are committed to safeguarding the future of those services in Newcastle, and our board has given its whole-hearted support to a wide ranging programme that will ensure we achieve all the standards determined by NHS England.”
NHSE’s national review into the future of child heart and transplant services ordered that Newcastle:
Be required to develop and deliver a plan to increase surgical activity so that it has a team of at least three surgeons, each undertaking at least 125 operations per year from 2019/20.
Will not be required to meet the 2019 deadline for full co-location for paediatric cardiac services, but will be required to meet these standards if NHS England confirms a plan to commission level one CHD services beyond March 2021.
The trust is only one of two NHS organisations that provide children’s heart transplant surgery in the UK, and the only one in the country to offer transplant surgery to both adults and children with congenital heart disease.
However, while surgery is carried out at the Freeman other paediatric surgery services are based at the Great North Children’s Hospital.
The trust has unveiled a threestep programme – beginning with the recruitment drive.
The second stage would be the transfer of child heart and transplant services to the Great North Children’s Hospital, before the expected move of remaining cardiothoracic services to the RVI.
Dame Jackie added: “Work has already begun to recruit extra staff and we are liaising closely with NHSE on options for funding the co-location of services.
“Moving the rest of the cardiothoracic services will require a major review of our services and estate that has not yet begun.
“Moving any NHS service can be costly, disruptive and time-consuming, but at the heart of any decision to move must be the safety and best interests of all of our patients.
“NHSE believes that the standards they have set for paediatric CHD services will ensure safe, high quality care.
“We know that our services already deliver excellent outcomes for our patients and in looking to the future we want to ensure that we can continue to provide such outstanding care for the people who need it - and that’s why the board has given its support to this major programme.
“Any changes to services will be a major undertaking for the trust and not just those services in our cardiothoracic directorate - but we will make every effort to ensure that staff and patients affected by the proposed moves are actively involved in shaping what the future will look like.”