Last September, I secured a commitment from the Hillingdon Hospitals Trust to review the impact of the Urgent Care Centre closure at Mount Vernon Hospital.
I followed this up with the Chair of the Trust, Matthew Swindells, to ask how the review would be conducted and measured. I also shared some of the feedback from residents who had been required to use services at the Pembroke Centre and Hillingdon Hospital’s A&E and did not feel as though they were sufficiently filling the gap.
Unfortunately, the initial response appeared to brush over any negatives and insisted – in essence – that everything was fine. In light of what I had been hearing, I pressed for further details on the indicators being used to measure the feedback and in particular ‘patient experience’.
The letter I have since received continues to plug the narrative that all is well. If the data provided is an accurate and complete picture, then it is of course to be welcomed. Regretfully, however, I remain unconvinced, especially by the commitment to transparency, given the process running up to the closure lacked exactly that.
I know residents may have concerns, but please be assured I will continue to scrutinise data and hold the Hillingdon Hospitals Trust to account.
The response and cited data can be found below.
