Early closure of the old Tenby Cottage Hospital has been 'forced by poor management' by the Health Trust, local AM Christine Gwyther claimed this week. Announcement of the hospital's impending closure was revealed in last week's issue of the Observer - despite recent promises by the Trust that it would remain open until completion of the bed provision project at the town's Park House Court Nursing Home. Responding to the announcement in a statement on Wednesday, Ms Gwyther said: "Firstly, can I say how disappointed I am that Keith Thomson (Health Trust chief executive) has made this announcement ahead of a formal meeting with the Tenby Local Implementation Group, a group of local residents who have worked tirelessly on the reprovision of services from the old Tenby Cottage Hospital. "They have been responsible for overseeing the design and build of the wonderful new Tenby Cottage Hospital at Butts Field and are working hard to oversee the design and build of the in- patient provision at Park House Court Nursing Home. Yet he has chosen to make this announcement now, in spite of having a LIG meeting scheduled for next week. I know that LIG members will be dismayed at this turn of events. "Patient safety, of course, is paramount and must never, ever be compromised," agreed Ms Gwyther, but she said she had "deep concerns about the effectiveness of a management regime that has allowed staff numbers to drop so drastically over the last year and I have relayed these concerns to the health minister, Dr. Brian Gibbons. "These concerns will also, I am sure, be aired at the LIG meeting next week. I hope that the community health council will be at that meeting. They recently agreed, albeit reluctantly, to the closure of the beds at the old Tenby Cottage Hospital when the Trust told them that patient safety would be compromised if it stayed open. "Faced with the dilemma of reduced bed capacity or compromised patient safety, they could take no other course of action but to agree to the closure. I find myself in the same position, but it a position which has been forced by the Trust, through poor management of changes in provision at Tenby. "I would like to place on record my thanks to each and every member of the Tenby Local Implementation Group (even those with whom I occasionally argue!) for their fantastic, selfless contribution to health care in Tenby and South East Pembrokeshire. "They may well be feeling that the Trust has kicked them in the teeth at this final hurdle, but it is a fact that local residents and visitors will benefit from their hard work for generations to come. And when the new ward is opened at Park House in the summer, I hope that all the LIG members will be there so that I - and maybe even the Trust - can thank them for what they have done."
