Wycombe Hospital was built in the 1960s and is crucial in serving all in Wycombe alongside some of the most deprived communities in the county. I have a long history of supporting Wycombe Hospital and I will continue to strive to achieve the best possible healthcare in our town.
I am aware of the site’s structural issues, and I have been resolute in supporting Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust in addressing them. I have been in direct contact with Health Ministers and No. 10 to explore ways in which the Trust can be supported to ensure it has suitable facilities to offer modern healthcare to all. I have worked closely with the other Bucks MPs on this issue and if I am returned as the MP for Wycombe, I will continue to do so.
While these repairs may be necessary, we should not forget just how excellent the services at Wycombe Hospital are. Earlier this year, Wycombe Elective Surgical Centre (WESC) was nominated by the regional NHS team for the prestigious national surgical hub accreditation program. I was glad to visit Wycombe Hospital to discuss the announcement with doctors there and the many positives it will bring to health outcomes for all in Wycombe.
There are only 31 of these in hubs in the country, and Wycombe will be only the second surgical centre in the South-East and the first within the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Berkshire West Integrated Care System to receive this accolade. This means the Wycombe Elective Surgical Centre, a specialist in diverse fields including hip and knee replacement, paediatrics, and robotic surgery, among others, has now been officially recognised as a fully accredited Surgical hub by the NHS England National Accreditation team.
The hub will serve as a major training centre, drawing surgeons and anaesthetists to our area and helping to improve standards and recruitment. The Hub will also offer both adult and paediatric surgery, which is far less common and will mean better service for children in our town.
The accreditation of the Wycombe Elective Surgery Centre is a testament to the sterling efforts of Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust to improve care for everyone in the years since 2010. I am proud to have played my part in delivering a health service worthy of local people.
I have long championed a high standard of care in Wycombe. My campaign for an NHS Urgent Treatment Centre at Wycombe Hospital, classed by the NHS as a Type 3 A&E, resulted in our UTC officially opening in December 2018. This allows for local people to turn-up at the centre if they need urgent, but not life-threatening, medical attention, and compliments the specialist heart and stroke units at our hospital.
Some still ask me why there is not a full A&E service at Wycombe Hospital. It is a reasonable question to ask. Everyone would welcome that, no one more than me. Any Member of Parliament for Wycombe would exhaust all opportunities to bring A&E back to Wycombe Hospital and since my election in 2010, I have done so.
When Wycombe Hospital was built, the treatment for a heart attack was bed rest. With advances in medicine, many conditions including heart attacks are now treated in specialist units. Consequently, if you have a heart attack you are now five times more likely to live.
Specialised care is spread throughout the county, including our specialised heart and stroke units in Wycombe Hospital. This has dramatically improved outcomes for patients. Old-style A&E departments gave peace of mind but were not able to provide the standard of care we demand today.
While specialisation significantly drives up quality of care, it means hospitals must serve larger populations. So, while I would love to have a full-service hospital in Wycombe, today’s quality of care means we can have one set of services to serve the whole of the county. Those services are of course divided between Wycombe and Stoke Mandeville. The practical reality is that we will not see Stoke Mandeville’s facilities relocated to Wycombe. Apart from any other factors, Stoke Mandeville is central to our county and there is not sufficient space in Wycombe.
Since I was first elected as the MP for Wycombe in 2010, I have always put improving healthcare in our area at the top of my priorities. If I am returned as the MP for our area, I will continue to do so.