135 Wolverhampton nursing jobs axed in £3.9m cuts

Wolverhampton CCG is proposing to pull the funding from the 2015/16 budget as it battles to save £37m over the next five years.

The move would see 135 full-time nursing posts made redundant - at a time when the Wolverhampton NHS trust is battling to increase its staff numbers.

It would also see the withdrawal of 10 seven-day consultancy posts, an initiative considered crucial in reducing the mortality rate across the city.

All 'Band 7' supervisory ward nurses would also be required to return to clinical duties, leading to concerns that wards would not be effectively managed.

Sources close to the trust say the cuts would financially and clinically de-stabilise the organisation, leading to potentially dire consequences for patient safety.

A proposal was also put forward for the closure of New Cross Hospital's dedicated dementia ward, although this has now been saved for the next 12 months.

The plans have provoked outrage among health bosses in the city, who say the CCG has attempted to force through the cuts without proper consultation.

Councillor Zahid Shah, vice-chair of the health scrutiny panel on Wolverhampton City Council, said: "The CCG has brought in these proposals without entering into discussions with the Health and Scrutiny Panel.

"This is in despite of the CCG agreeing a policy with the board that we would be consulted on such decisions from the outset.

"With cuts of this nature they have got to consult with the public.

"I believe they have failed to take into account the effect of their decision on the quality of service or patient safety.

"How can you take away 135 nurses without an impact on patient safety?

"These are vital services. The seven-day posts have helped the trust to reduce death rates across the city because they are able to support people who need urgent care on weekends.

"I would ask the CCG to seriously reconsider the impact of these cuts."

As part of the plans, the CCG provided an assessment form to the trust completed by executive nurse Manjeet Garcha.

It states that there will be no quality or patient safety impact as a result of the funding withdrawal.

The trust has embarked on a recruitment drive in recent years having previously received confirmation from the CCG that the required funding would be recurrent.

Last month, the CCG revealed plans for a raft of cuts to 'non-essential' services, including an Age UK transport service for vulnerable people, a community ultrasound service and support groups for people with mental illnesses.