John Baron MP welcomes decision to keep hyper acute stroke services at Basildon Hospital

John with Clare Panniker during a recent visit to Basildon Hospital

MP congratulates Basildon Hospital and local CCGs on increased investment

Last year, NHS England announced proposals to close the Hyper Acute Stroke Unit [HASU] at Basildon Hospital, and instead designate Southend Hospital as the local HASU. These proposals were controversial, not least because of issues with the reliability and robustness of the East of England Ambulance Service.

Over the last year, John Baron MP and others have campaigned to keep the HASU at Basildon Hospital. NHS England has now confirmed that it had abandoned its plans to close the Basildon HASU. Following this news, Basildon and Brentwood CCG, in conjunction with Thurrock CCG, will be investing £1 million in the Basildon HASU, to bring it up to the highest standards.

John said,

“Moving the HASU risked patient care. Time is of the essence for stroke patients, and the additional journey time to Southend could have made all the difference. The sensible solution was for this service to remain within easy reach of the local population, and so I am glad NHS England has made the right decision.”

“I would like to thank the local healthcare community who rallied to the cause. I congratulate our local CCGs on their £1 million investment in stroke services at Basildon Hospital. This is a vote of confidence in our local hospital, and should do much to reduce stroke mortality and disability in our area.”

Clare Panniker (Chief Executive, Basildon Hospital) said,

“We are delighted to have the opportunity to invest in further improvements in our Stroke Service.  We have worked very hard to ensure patients receive the best care and achieve the best outcomes and this additional investment will enable more services to be provided 7 days per week.  Having already established Consultant presence at weekends, we will now be able to add to this with additional therapy and nursing support for the benefit of our patients.”

Tom Abell (Chief Officer, Basildon and Brentwood CCG) said,

“We are committed to improving the health outcomes of people who live in Basildon and Brentwood. Whilst we currently have a good stroke service, with mortality rates at Basildon Hospital now among the best in Essex, we recognise that there is always room for improvement. With this investment and by working in partnership with the hospital and NHS Thurrock CCG, we aim to see further improvement in stroke services across every day of the week and patients benefiting from more therapy to help them recover quickly and live independent lives if they suffer from a stroke.”