Jacqui Smith welcomes
Ophthalmology findings for the Alex
For immediate
release
12
December
2003.
Jacqui Smith MP
has welcomed news coming from the recent stakeholder event held by
the Acute Hospital Trust into the future of hospital services for
eye conditions in the County.
It was announced
at a meeting held on 11 December that a preferred option had
emerged from the work of a yearlong stakeholder examination of the
best way forward.
The preferred
option would see eye services including cataract surgery being
retained at the Alex. The proposal is that
facilities at the Alex would be upgraded
too.
Jacqui
said.
“Although
no final decision has been taken yet I am delighted by the outcome
of the work so far. Not so many months ago we
were looking at a drastic downgrading of eye services at the Alex
now it looks like not only will vital cataract work continue at the
site but facilities will be improved
too.”
The news comes on
top of other good news for patients needing eye
treatments. The eighteen month waits that people
used to face will be down to below three months by August next
year, already waits are down to under five
months.
Jacqui
said
“I must congratulate everyone involved in
bringing down waiting times so well. The
government has done its done its bit by providing the resources but
without the hard work of staff in our hospitals and reforms in the
way they work we could not achieve so
much.”
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