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Shortlist drawn up for hospital replacement
Health chiefs are drawing up a shortlist of sites in Hemel Hempstead where a new facility could be built to replace the current hospital.
A list of around four or five sites is expected to be announced in the autumn for the 30million facility, due to be built in 2012 and run by West Herts Primary Care Trust (PCT).
The facility was first announced last year in the consultation 'Delivering a healthy future for Hertfordshire', which decided to centralise acute care in Watford.
The building is expected to house a minor injuries unit, outpatients department and diagnostic facilities – the services that will remain in Hemel Hempstead when A&E closes next year.
Funding for the unit has yet to be secured.
In the intervening period parts of the hospital site no longer needed will be sold off.
Rumours circulated last year that hospital bosses were in talks with West Herts College concerning a move to the college's Marlowes site, leaving Hillfield Road free for complete sell-off.
Niall Sookoo, assistant director of communications at the PCT, said: "The shortlist of sites will be announced in the early autumn.
"Local residents will then get a further opportunity to make their views on the short-listed sites."
In terms of funding he said: "We are presently identifying the best option for the PCT and do not expect there to be any problem in obtaining the money to build a new local general hospital for Hemel Hempstead."
MP Mike Penning said: "If they are looking at more than one site that means what we've said all along about pulling off the existing site is true.
"Whatever the new facility is, it's nowhere near what we've got now or what we had."
Mr Penning also claims the possibility of a return for the Hemel Birth Centre has been dealt a blow by Jan Filochowski, chief executive at West Herts Hospitals NHS Trust.
Following a meeting between the two last Friday Mr Penning said: "He told me: 'We have no plans to reopen maternity services'.
"I'm furious. It's more broken promises."
Mr Filochowski's predecessor David Law said last year they would be investigating reopening the unit.
A review of maternity services across Hertfordshire by the PCT began in May and a report is due in September.
In a statement the hospital trust said it had not changed its position and the opening of the unit depended on having sufficient midwives.
"Irrespective of the outcome of this review, (problems] recruiting midwives would make it difficult for the trust to staff the birthing unit to a safe level," the statement said.
Instead any replacement is likely to be a 'domino unit' run by community midwives provided by the PCT, the statement said.
Full maternity services, including the special care baby unit, were closed at Hemel Hempstead Hospital in 2003 despite a huge public backlash.
The birth centre, for low risk births, opened in 2003 to soften the blow but was closed in 2005.
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Weather for Hemel Hempstead
Saturday 04 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: -1 C to 1 C
Wind Speed: 16 mph
Wind direction: South
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: -1 C to 3 C
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