 Monklands Hospital is one of the hospitals in the review |
Health chiefs in Lanarkshire are asking people for their views on a planned shake-up which could lead to the closure of one of its three A&E units. NHS Lanarkshire has more unfilled consultant jobs than any other health board in Scotland.
It needs to modernise to attract staff and improve standards, but the board said having three accident and emergency units was unsustainable.
The hospitals are in the seats of three leading politicians.
Wishaw General is in First Minister Jack McConnell's constituency and Hairmyres in East Kilbride is in the seat of Health Minister Andy Kerr.
Monklands Hospital is in the Westminster constituency of the former UK Health Secretary John Reid, who is now secretary of state for defence.
Community nurses
People will be asked, over the next three months, to help decide which of the three A&E units should close.
Healthcare analysts stress that Wishaw and Hairmyres are fairly new hospitals built by private finance initiatives, leaving Monklands vulnerable.
Lanarkshire's 500,000-strong population has one of the worst health records in Scotland.
It is proposed that additional services would be developed in Lanark, Cumbernauld and Kilsyth, Biggar and Douglas to treat patients with minor injuries and illnesses.
Paramedics and community nurses would also be given the skills to provide more care in the event of an emergency in people's own homes.
One-Minute World News 
News services
E-mail this to a friend 
Printable version 