Copyright 2006 Gale Group, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
Copyright 2006 MGN Ltd.
BY ROB MERRICK
Daily Post (Liverpool, England)
A single ambulance service stretching from Crewe to Carlisle will allow paramedics to reach emergencies even faster, the Government pledged yesterday.
As expected, the Department of Health (DoH) announced that Mersey Regional Ambulance Service (MRAS) will merge with three others in theregion, from July 1.
In a statement to MPs, Health Minister Lord Warner said the move would cut red tape, delivering more money to invest in front line services and better patient care.
It will join MRAS with the services for Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Cumbria under the leadership of John Burnside, currently chief executive in Greater Manchester.
The new headquarters of the region-wide service and the implications for the MRAS base at Belmont Grove, Liverpool have not been decided.
Similar arguments for merging police forces have provoked a storm of protest from the Merseyside and Cheshire forces, which have registered official objections.
In addition, MRAS has already bounced back from a disastrous 2005 to beat national targets for emergency call-outs even before the region-wide service is created.
But, last night, Alan Murray, MRAS chief executive, said: “The trust welcomes today’s announcement. We believe there are significant benefits in this for patients and staff alike.
“We have made great improvements in recent months which are already being experienced by our patients. Today’s announcement will enableus to build on those.”
Last summer, the independent Healthcare Commission launched an urgent investigation into MRAS after it failed to achieve any of three targets for responding to calls.
But, in February, it was revealed that 76% of emergency calls werenow being reached in eight minutes, up from 73.7% and above the 75% target.
The merger of ambulance services was recommended last year by a review carried out for the DoH by its national ambulance adviser.
Announcing 12 ambulance trusts, slimmed down from the existing 29,Lord Warner said: “Larger organisations will be better equipped to meet the challenges faced by a 21st century service.”
Meanwhile, the DoH also confirmed the 303 primary care trusts (PCTs) in England, which buy hospital, GP and community health services for local people, will be merged into 152 larger trusts.
That shake-up, to come into force in October, will see eight PCTs covering Merseyside and Cheshire, in place of the current 15.
The only change from the proposals put forward last year is the dropping of a controversial plan for a single organisation for all of Cheshire.
Instead, the decision to split the county in two, with a Cheshire West PCT and one for Central and Easter n Cheshire, was welcomed by Andrew Miller, MP for Ellesmere Port and Neston.
The Labour backbencher said: “The health economies of Ellesmere Port and Chester are in no way related to those of Macclesfield and Congleton and the Health Secretary has made the right decision.”
Derek Campbell, chief executive of North, Central and South Liverpool PCTs, said: “We are delighted that our proposal for the creation of a single Primary Care Trust for Liverpool has been approved. This creates an opportunity to respond even more effectively to what people in this city want and need from their local health service.
“It is our job to secure the very best services we can.”