Major incident plan at crisis-hit Furness General Hospital (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Major incident plan at crisis-hit Furness General Hospital

8:42am Friday 14th October 2011 in Health

A MAJOR incident plan has been put in place at crisis hit Furness General Hospital in the wake of a series of damning reports about maternity services.

The plan will enable local health commissioners to provide more support for the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust if needed.

Earlier this week, the hospital trust’s independent regulator Monitor used its powers to make sure maternity services at the Barrow hospital remain safe for the future.

In its report, Monitor announced it is setting up an expert review of maternity services and an assessment of governance at the trust.

The calling of a major incident enables the local NHS to work closer together with hospital trusts and call in any additional support from other parts of the health service as required.

The introduction of the plan also follows damning reports from the Care Quality Commission and the Nursing and Midwifery Council. The unit is also under investigation by police after the deaths of a number of babies and mothers.

The Furness General Hospital’s maternity unit remains open as normal and patient services are unaffected.

Dr Mike Bewick, Medical Director at NHS Cumbria, said: “Safe hospital services are of paramount importance “The hospitals trust is already introducing an expert medical team to provide additional support and advice on its maternity services and the steps announced by Monitor this week will provide further assurance that patient care will remain safe in the long term.

"However, Monitor’s report this week has highlighted the need for the pace of change to be increased.

"The calling of a major incident is a device which the local NHS can use to put in place additional support if required.

"No services have been affected in any hospitals as a result of this step."