Imperial NHS Trust deny reported plans to close St Mary's

A heated exchange has broken out between Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and The Independent newspaper, amid fears that St Mary’s Hospital, based at Paddington, will be closed and sold for housing.

Reported in The Independent on Monday, managers at the Trust were said to have been considering a range of plans designed to avoid financial disaster. Danish architects C. F. Møller were said to have been consulted over one of the alleged plans for the future of the trust, and asked to provide a quote for building 3000 flats on the site. The paper also alleged that the Trust was also considering closing Charing Cross Hospital, relocating medical emergencies to Hammersmith and routine surgery to West Middlesex.

The Independent claimed to have contacted the Trust last Friday, who are said to have confirmed that they faced a significant financial deficit. According to the paper, the Trust revealed that they were ‘reviewing how healthcare could be provided in future across its sites’ and were considering ‘how to make the best of our buildings’. The paper also alleges that the Trust confirmed that they approached architects in December 2010 to determine the development potential of its sites.

Following Monday’s article, the Imperial Trust were said to have been ‘furious’ by the newspaper, and released a statement on their website ‘categorically denying’ that St Mary’s (or any site) was due for closure, stating that the Trust has not ‘engaged any firms of architects to look at our estate with a view to converting it into residential properties‘. The Trust also sought to reassure all patients and staff that ‘providing the highest quality clinical care across all our sites remains [a] priority’. In a letter to the paper on Tuesday, Mark Davis (CEO, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust) said that the future of ‘patient pathways, not sites’ was being considered.

The Independent has since accused the Trust of changing its story, and has vowed to stand by its allegations. The paper also claims that one of its sources revealed that the ‘proposal being openly canvassed is that Imperial will be centred on Hammersmith hospital, with an expanded clinical research site, and St Mary’s will close.’

With the NHS currently wrestling with a £20bn deficit, the news of Imperial Healthcare NHS Trust’s cash flow crisis will not come as a surprise. But, with debts totalling £100m this year, it is clear that cuts within the Imperial Trust will have to be made.

Medical students at Imperial will undoubtedly be worried about these developments – the majority of teaching occurs on the Charing Cross and St Mary’s campuses. Suzie Rayner, ICSMSU President, has sought to reassure students that the ICSMSU will keep a “close eye on this situation and will work with staff to ensure the preservation of St Mary’s and Charing Cross as teaching hospitals if this becomes necessary. We will inform students if any closure of our teaching hospitals appear to be on the horizon, however distant, but students can rest assured that any changes as large as those proposed will not happen in our time at ICSM.”

Amid all the controversy, one cannot escape the distinct feeling that somewhere buried in this story is a political move. With the much criticised and heavily protested Health and Social Care Bill returning to the Commons this week, the government is already under pressure to deliver decisive policy that will rescue the NHS from financial ruin. And with more protests scheduled this week to defend the NHS, all we can be sure of is that the political storm surrounding the NHS will be set to continue for the foreseeable future.