Campaigners have described the news as a 'tragedy', with bosses choosing 'the wrong hospital' to become the county's main hospital.

"It is a travesty that political correctness has overtaken commonsense," said David Allen, a general and vascular surgeon at the Chichester hospital.

"It is a tragedy for St Richard's and the people it serves."

Under the recommendation announced yesterday, Worthing will be the county's only major general hospital, with the only fully-fledged A&E, consultant maternity services, major surgery and inpatient children's services.

To see a video of PCT chief executive John Wilderspin talking about the recommendation click on the green button.

The Chichester hospital will lose its specialist services, which will be centralised to Worthing – forcing many patients and visitors to embark on journeys of more than an hour to reach Portsmouth or Worthing.

The main reasons for the decision going Worthing's way were:

It is a more deprived area.

It has a bigger catchment population and fewer people will have further to travel for services.

There has been a lot of investment in Portsmouth so it can cope with an influx of patients from the Chichester area.

"The PCT have failed to accept that St Richard's has a better quality of medical care, far and away the better management and the better estate to expand," Mr Allen said.

Campaigners are also angry the PCT has given so much weight to the 'perceived deprivation' in Worthing while doing little work on the impact on rural deprivation.

PCT bosses have also decided not to take ambulance response times or the impact of holiday-makers into consideration, arguing there was no evidence either Chichester or Worthing is more affected by either issue.

"The PCT decided that blue-light times should not be part of the decision-making process, and yet it is patients in the north of the downs, West Wittering and the more rural areas who will not only be picked up late by the ambulances, but will have further to travel for emergency care," Support St Richard's campaigner Abigail Rowe said.

"If you live on the Manhood Peninsula or in the downs, you will have average journey times of over an hour which could be the difference between life and death," she said.

St Richard's chief executive Andrew Liles briefed staff throughout yesterday (Thursday) and said that while he was disappointed, it was now essential the hospital worked closely with Worthing for the good of all patients.

"I want to reassure our patients, staff and wider public that our priority will continue to be the well-being of our patients," he said.

"I also want to thank the public and the campaign group for the tremendous ongoing support they have shown the hospital throughout this difficult period."

The PCT's board is meeting near Gatwick on Wednesday, June 4, and is expected to accept the recommendation.

"We have less than a week to make them see sense and recommend St Richard's to be the major general hospital," said Mrs Rowe.

"Protest with us at the meeting at the Copthorne Hotel at 2pm on Wednesday, June 4."

The campaign still has a limited number of seats available on its coach to Copthorne.

To book your place email or call 07802 783604.


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