WE WOULD like to clarify our proposals for the hospital services we provide, and also respond to questions that have been raised by your readers.

Firstly, we must stress that we are committed to improving the services we provide in our local hospitals in Basingstoke, Andover and Winchester.

For example, in Basingstoke hospital in the last year, we have opened a much-needed brand new radiotherapy unit for north Hampshire, and thanks to the support of North Hampshire Clinical Commissioning Group, who fund both primary care (GPs) as well as hospital services, GPs now work alongside the Emergency Department team in A&E, which is a first for the region.

Our proposal to create a Critical Treatment Hospital (CTH) is to make services even safer for the sickest or most at risk patients.

It is based on the need for consultant-delivered treatment on site 24/7, which is not the model in the NHS at the moment. This model can only be achieved by delivering these services in one place.

It’s also why we are proposing to centralise obstetric care (medical care during labour) at the CTH so we can make the service safer for women who need medical help with their baby’s birth or whose babies need specialist medical care when new-born. Nationally, doctors and nurses are recommending this model and locally our own doctors, senior clinical staff, GP leaders and the ambulance service support it.

The new Cancer Treatment Centre would be located on the same site as the CTH, and both will be a centre of excellence for our area.

Our plan is to provide cancer treatment and support under one roof in a patient-focused state-of-the-art treatment centre for north and mid Hampshire.

The cancer centre will make a significant difference to the many local people living with cancer, often for many years. It will mean that our patients don’t have to travel long distances or to multiple centres to receive their care at a time when they are already feeling unwell and vulnerable.

They and their families will also have access to a range of associated support and therapies all in one place. We intend it to be a well-designed, attractive and peaceful place so that the centre itself creates a healing environment.

We believe care should be local where possible and central where necessary for patient safety. Our local hospitals will continue to play a vital role for our communities and will be where most patients are cared for and treated.

For example, the Emergency Departments at Basingstoke and Winchester will continue to treat patients who are either brought there or who present themselves. Local people will go to their hospital in Basingstoke or Winchester just as they do now for operations, outpatient appointments, x-rays, blood tests and scans and women can choose to have a midwife-led birth there.

We recently announced our preferred location for the CTH is on the north side of the M3 near junction 7. The reason we prefer this location is because of its closeness to the major road network, giving fast access for ambulances.

Our partners at South Central Ambulance Service, who understand emergency vehicle travel times, have told us this is the best location for our population, who are spread from Eastleigh in the south, to Newbury in the north, and from Andover in the west to Hook in the east.

Building on a new site is the most cost-effective option and provides us with the rare chance to create a modern hospital where the design of the building itself helps speed emergency patients to the right place and the right doctors.

Although most people will arrive by ambulance at the CTH, we are also considering travel and transport for their families, looking at a range of transport options and talking to local transport providers.

We will be making sure there are many opportunities for people to express their views on this and any other questions as we go through the planning application process early next year, and this will include a consultation with those living nearby.

The proposal to build the hospital is subject to scrutiny from NHS and local authority bodies and, importantly, the public must be consulted before it can go ahead. This public consultation would be led for the NHS by our clinical commissioners, and we expect it to take place some time next year.

Meanwhile, we are being open about our proposals and we want to hear what people have to say. This feedback will help to shape our plans.

You can find more information on our website – see the Fit For the Future section.

If you have any comments, we would like to hear from you. Please do not hesitate to contact us on future@hhft.nhs.uk.