The highest level of critical care will not return to Barrow’s Furness General Hospital.
Level 3 intensive care was suspended at the hospital in September due to issues with recruiting qualified and experienced staff. It had only three permanent consultants in post against a national guidance requirement of eight.
he three levels of adult intensive care are defined by the intensity of organ support and monitoring required.
Level 1 is for patients at risk of their condition deteriorating, requiring additional support and monitoring on a regular ward.
Level 2, also known as high dependency, provides support for a single failing organ system or post-operative care.
Level 3, the most intensive level, involves support for two or more failing organ systems, including mechanical ventilation
While the temporary change has been in place, patients who require Level 3 critical care were transferred to Royal Lancaster Infirmary, once stabilised.
Patients who needed levels 1 and 2 critical care continued to be treated and cared for at the hospital in Barrow.
Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board, the commissioners of the service, said since the suspension of Level 3 at FGH, there were 30 patients over a six-month period who have been transferred to a different provider, 10 of whom would have been transferred even if there had been a Level 3 unit at FGH due to their clinical needs, and there had been no adverse outcomes.
The board asked the Clinical Senate to carry out an independent review to advise on the safety and sustainability of the service going forward – taking into account the recruitment efforts since the temporary change was made.
Experts within the Lancashire and South Cumbria Critical Care Network were also asked to ensure the work done to date meets the national safety standards required.
Following the publication of this review, the board has decided that the preferred option is to make this temporary suspension permanent.
Professor Andy Knox, medical director at NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board, said: “When considering how we provide the very best services for patients, we want to ensure that they are clinically safe and provide the highest quality of care, in line with national guidance. This is especially important when it comes to intensive care.
“The report from the independent review has found that the previous provision could not meet the necessary standards and was therefore not safe.
“Due to this, the Clinical Senate are supportive of the Intensive Care Unit at FGH continuing to provide Level 1 and 2 care on site with a treat and transfer service to either RLI or another appropriate provider.
“As a result, we intend to make the temporary suspension of Level 3 intensive care at FGH permanent, but not before we engage with the local community, patients and staff.
“We have worked in collaboration with the team at University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay Trust and the difficult decision to originally suspend the service last year was made to protect the safety of patients and staff.
“Medical staffing within the unit at FGH has been a concern for several years, with consultant cover not meeting national guidance despite significant efforts from the trust.
“Our priority is to ensure the future delivery of a safe and sustainable critical care service at FGH to provide the best possible service to our local population, and we will keep everyone updated on next steps.”
