RUGBEIANS are being invited to help shape the future of the Hospital of St Cross.
University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW) NHS Trust, which runs Rugby’s hospital, is inviting residents to give their views on its Organisational Plan for 2022 to 2030.
The Trust, which also manages University Hospital Coventry (UHC), intends to work more closely with its communities to develop and enhance its services.
The plan also outlines how to meet growing demand for healthcare and improve the health and wellbeing of patients.
Professor Andy Hardy, Chief Executive Officer of the Trust, said: “Our experience with the pandemic has firmly emphasised the importance of keeping our population healthy and well and ensuring people can access the services they need, when they need them.
“That is why it is so important our hospitals, with support from our health and care partners, set out how we intend to meet current and future challenges and ensure our services go from strength to strength.
“Every one of us has an important role to play in this and I would urge everyone who has used our services or has an interest in our approach to share what is important to them and help us deliver the best possible care and treatment for our local communities.”
Rugby MP Mark Pawsey is urging residents to take part in the consultation to ensure Rugby’s needs are represented.
Mr Pawsey has told Prof Hardy he wants better integrated services at St Cross, including Accident and Emergency, in line with the growth of the town.
His own survey of residents showed 83 per cent of the Rugby constituency live more than a 15-minute drive from UHC’s A&E department.
He said: “We need to ensure more services are available locally for Rugby constituents and enhance the existing provisions to meet the challenges of a growing, and ageing, population.
“I hope Professor Hardy and his team will continue to provide new services for local residents, as we have seen with the recent opening of new operating theatres and a new haematology unit.
“I will continue to press both the Trust and my colleagues in Government to invest in St Cross as part of this important organisational strategy.”
Visit www.uhcw.nhs.uk to read the draft summary of UHCW’s Organisational Plan and give feedback via a survey. The deadline for responses is Friday March 18.
The Trust will use feedback to inform its future plan ahead of its publication later in the spring.
