There could be deaths - warning

Kent Ayers has told the Herald he left because he felt he would not be able to provide proper care for his patients and he has given a damning verdict on the management of the NHS Trust which runs both the DGH and the Conquest.

Mr Ayers, a well respected and popular obstetrician who worked at the hospital for six years, has said plans to close the obstetric and gynaecology departments, and the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) at the DGH, are "ridiculous" and a "false economy"

Mr Ayers left the hospital at the end of July in protest at the plans to "reconfigure" maternity services.

This is likely to result in Eastbourne patients being forced to travel to the Conquest in Hastings or the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton.

Mr Ayers said senior managers "refused to listen" to arguments in favour of keeping the services in Eastbourne.

After months of rumours East Sussex Hospitals Trust has recently put forward the view that a "single site option" (basing all of the above services at Hastings is the most cost effective way of operating and will not compromise the level of care and safety of patients.

But Mr Ayers has rejected this and claims closures at Eastbourne will lead to fatalities, he said, "Eastbourne maternity services are excellent and should be seen as a beacon in the region and we have some of the best figures within whole the region.

"This is largely down to the excellence in mid-wifery.The mid-wives in Eastbourne are fantastic.

"In the last three years there have been five near deaths of pregnant women in Eastbourne.

"If they had to go to Hastings they would have died. The Trust is working on the assumption that five deaths in three years is acceptable but this was not acceptable to me."

He criticised the intransigence of managers of the Trust who he said are determined to close the obstetric and gynaecology departments at Eastbourne.

He sadi, "The managers are completely dismissive of the evidence and that is why I left. I was getting really worked up about the fact they wouldn't listen to any of the arguments for Eastbourne.

"It's a completely false economy, it's cuckoo land, its nuts.

My Ayers also said switching services to Hastings will not save money.

He said the evidence from an independent committee supports keeping obstetric and gynaecology departments at both hospitals, and he claimed that any short-term savings will be negated by the need for more staff to cope with the increased demand generated by basing the services at just one hospital.

He said, "Three years ago The East Sussex Tri-Forum Maternity Services Liason Committee published a report which stated there was no benefit in changing the maternity services at the hospitals.

"Since then, and in light of the recent proposals, they have looked at it again and have found no change.

"They found there would be an initial financial saving of 400,000 but that would be taken up the extra staff who would need to be employed.

"An extra tier of anaesthetists would be needed to provide epidurals, at present the anaesthetists cover both maternity and intensive care but that would not be possible with the increased demand created from having the maternity and gynaecology services at just one hospital.

"They are looking at it in terms of staffing but this argument is erroneous.

"A single site would mean you have more junior doctors on one site but because the unit will be far more busy, because it's serving such a large area, and you will have to have two doctors to cover maternity and gynaecology.

"I know a very conscientous junior doctor who said that he is run off his feet at Eastbourne but the managers just said he needs to work harder.