Health bosses 'failed abysmally' over closure of Cornwall minor injuries unit
NHS Kernow has admitted there was a failure in letting people know that Launceston MIU was forced to shut temporarily
Last updated 4th Aug 2021
Health bosses have admitted that there was a failure in letting people know that a minor injuries unit was forced to close temporarily.
There was shock last week when the Launceston Minor Injuries Unit (MIU) suddenly closed due to a lack of staff.
On Tuesday the NHS Kernow Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) governing body said that communication about the closure had "failed abysmally".
The governing body heard that a patient had attended the MIU for help and found it was closed and when they went to their GP surgery they "had no idea what was going on".
Paul Cook, chair of the NHS Kernow Governing Body, said that it was a really important issue which had been raised in a number of health meetings in the past week.
He said: "The decision (to close the MIU) was made at a silver call but in terms of response for communication, that failed abysmally".
Members of the governing body said that there should be representatives from primary care, such as GPs, on the silver calls which make decisions about services so that information can be shared properly.
Trudy Corsellis, deputy director of corporate governance at NHS Kernow, said that the communication about the closure was “very poor” and said that wasn't just for GPs but for the public as well.
She said that it was important to get that right in future, adding: "I hate to say it but the likelihood is that may continue to happen".
A petition has now been started calling for the Launceston MIU to reopen immediately and calling for an explanation about the decision. It has so far received more than 1,500 signatures.
Dr Cook said that a formal response would be provided to the petitioners once it had been submitted to NHS Kernow.
Dr Judy Duckworth, GP member of the governing body, said that the MIU had closed due to a lack of staff and said there was no easy solution to that.
She said: "We are all in agreement that closing urgent care units will put more impact on GPs in the area and have a knock on effect on A&E in Derriford, North Devon and Treliske".
And she urged people to write to Cornwall's MPs to ask them to address the situation which she said was due to a "clinical workforce shortage".
The GP also highlighted that staff at MIUs were under extreme pressure due to increased demand and also hostility from patients.
"Staff in MIUs are dealing with an awful lot of patients, they are under a lot of pressure. Waiting times have increased as a result and they are sometimes treated quite rudely by people, they are really under quite a lot of stress and staff sickness has gone up.
"Clinicians are pretty exhausted by the last 18 months. This pressure and sometimes hostility from the people they are dealing with is really not helping. That will have a knock on effect on staff retention. We need to be kind to one another".
Dr John Garman, GP member, said that while Launceston MIU had closed temporarily it was not the only MIU affected.
He said: "Helston MIU is closed more often than it is open and on the Isles of Scilly it is staffed with nurses not trained in minor injuries. It is across the board".