Central Middlesex Hospital (CMH) will lose its accident and emergency department (A&E) on September 10 this year.
The unit in Acton Lane, Park Royal, has been axed as part as the controversial Shaping a Healthier Future (SAHF) plans, following a lengthy consultation and in house discussions from NHS bosses which took place in February last year.
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The North West London Hospitals NHS Trust (NWLH) claims the decision takes into account the reducing number of patients using CMH A&E, difficulties with staffing the service and the growing role of the 24/7 urgent care centres used by patients.
As part of the plans, CMH will focus on planned services, such as outpatients and some surgery, as well as a 24/7 urgent care centre.
It is hoped that the extra 46 beds, opened at Northwick Park Hospital, in Watford Road, in the last financial year and the new A&E department, due to open in autumn, can cope with the added pressure following the closure.David McVittie chief executive of NWLH said: “Changes to much-loved services are never easy to talk about and these are not decisions we take lightly. He continued: “We strongly believe that Central Middlesex will continue to be a thriving local hospital, albeit a different one, looking after our local community for a long time to come.”
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