A TEAM of people has arrived in the area to scrutinise the proposals put forward for acute hospital care by the A Picture of Health process.

The first task for members of the Independent Reconfiguration Panel (IRP) last week was to visit all the hospitals involved in the proposals, including Orpington Hospital where the Orpington Treatment Centre for planned surgery is based.

The IRP has been asked by Health Secretary Alan Johnson to look at the A Picture of Health (APOH) proposals, following the decision by Bexley Council and the joint scrutiny committee of councillors from the affected south east London boroughs, to formally register their dissatisfaction with the APOH plans.

Panel chairman is Nottingham GP Peter Barrett and his team consists of 15 lay, clinical and managerial people.

Dr Barrett has only brought a small number of team members who will stay in the area until the end of February, gathering evidence to take back to the rest of the panel.

As well as councillors and MPs, panel members will be talking with staff, patients, carers, special interest groups and ordinary members of the public, to hear any views which people feel were ignored by APOH, or new matters not raised before.

London Mayor, Boris Johnson has also asked to speak to the panel.

Dr Barrett stressed: “We are genuinely independent. This is the taxpayers’ health service. We are no pushover.”

All the evidence will be recorded. Dr Barrett explained: “We want to make sure we don’t miss anything.”

It will then be transcribed, before being put to the whole panel.

The team plans to hold drop-in evening sessions so staff can put forward their points.

Dr Barrett said: “We want to be as inclusive as we can.”

He said his team would focus on the quality of care and patient services the proposed changes would provide, as well as the accessibility and sustainability of the APOH proposals.

They will also look at the quality and range of the APOH consultation.

The team will then take all the evidence back to the panel, which will give the Health Secretary their advice at the end of March.

Dr Barrett said: “He is not obliged to accept it, but he has done so on all the cases we have looked at so far.”

Its report will be published a month later.

If you would like to give views to the panel, call 020 7389 8055 or email info@irpanel.org.uk

A Picture of HEalth

The A Picture of Health proposals involve Queen Mary’s Hospital, Sidcup; Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich; Lewisham Hospital and Princess Royal Hospital, Farnborough.

They recommend A&E, maternity and in-patient children’s emergency services should be stripped from Queen Mary’s, but will remain at the other three hospitals.

At Lewisham Hospital, surgical A&E admissions will only be accepted between 8am and 8pm.

All four hospitals will continue with day surgery.

Planned operations will be concentrated at Queen Mary’s and Lewisham Hospitals and planned surgery carried out at Orpington Hospital’s Orpington Treatment Centre will transfer to Queen Mary’s.