Liberal Democrat councillors last week received a letter confirming their concerns that service levels at the St Ann’s X-ray unit have recently been cut drastically. The North Middlesex Hospital Trust, which runs the service at St Ann’s, explained in a letter to Councillor Wayne Hoban, Deputy Leader of the Lib Dems, that the department had been reduced from three radiographers to just one as of the 4th September.

Councillor Hoban wrote to the Trust after many of his local residents contacted him with reports of a reduced service at the hospital. The hospital trust confirmed that the cuts have “reduced the department from a semi-autonomous unit to a single staffed room configuration.” The decision to reduce the unit from three radiographers to one is to be reviewed in December.

Councillor Hoban comments:

“This is just one example of how the Labour Government’s policy on the NHS is affecting local services and local people. We marched against the total closure of the unit back in June, and are now seriously concerned to see that there has been a 66% drop in service provision since September.

“I have written to the North Middlesex to explain that it is vital that local users of the X-ray service, including GPs and their patients, are properly consulted to assess the impact of the cuts when the review is undertaken in December.”

Richard Wilson, Lib Dem Health Spokesperson, adds:

“Our local services are suffering as a result of constant top-slicing of budgets and the loss of funds to pay for debts in other parts of the NHS. Our local hospitals and health trusts have seen beds lost, a ward and clinics closed, and now we are beginning to see crucial services such as the St Ann’s X-ray unit being cut back too. Labour need to sort out health funding, and do so quickly.”