Southport MP Damien Moore has again called for Children’s A&E services to return to Southport Hospital ahead of a hospital merger which comes into effect this weekend.
Mr Moore has today received confirmation that the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Steve Barclay MP, has formally approved the creation of the new Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
The new Trust, which will formally be launched on 1st July 2023, will be created by merging the existing St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust, after much deliberation and scrutiny on the potential effects on services for Southport residents.
The names of hospitals and sites within the trust will remain the same, as Southport & Formby General District Hospital will continue to deliver the same hospital care, primary & intermediate care, and community-based services for Southport residents.
This follows Mr. Moore’s extensive correspondence with NHS officials and the Department for Health and Social Care, including multiple meetings with the Secretary of State to argue that local services in Southport should not be negatively impacted by any changes. Furthermore, Mr. Moore has strongly made the case to Ministers and to the NHS for the merger, and its increased synergies across staffing, to finally address the staff shortage that has stood in the way of the return of the Children’s A&E to Southport.
While any reconfiguration of local services will come at a later date, and details are yet to be announced, Mr Moore has received assurances that this merger will provide the best possible outcome for Southport residents requiring NHS services locally, as a route to the long-term sustainability of both Southport and Ormskirk Hospitals.
Damien Moore, Member of Parliament for Southport, said:
“I am pleased that with this merger, we are one step closer towards seeing the children’s A&E return to Southport Hospital, and that we have shored up our valuable local NHS for the future.
“As a long-term Southport resident, I share my constituent’s deep understanding that access to high quality, local healthcare is an absolute priority for us all.
“That is why I will continue to do all I can to champion local healthcare provision, including the return of the Children’s A&E, as I was elected to do for Southport.”
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