Kirkcudbright Hospital campaigners brand latest consultation exercise "something of a sham"

Bill Craig, Mary Mier and Geoff Dean of Save Kirkcudbright Hospital Action Group

Campaigners fighting for the reopening of Kirkcudbright Hospital have branded the latest round of consultation “something of a sham”.

Members of Save Kirkcudbright Hospital Action Group were among 12 people invited to a recent workshop in the town by the region’s health and social care partnership.

The group had been left feeling “let down” in the autumn after Dumfries and Galloway Integration Joint Board decided against reopening the facility – closed since 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic – following the Right Care, Right Place intermediate care consultation, instead opting to review the situation “following work with communities on the future role of cottage hospital sites”.

And while members thought all options were on the table, they claim they were told at the workshop it was unlikely the hospital would be reopened.

Action group spokesman, Geoff Dean, said: “The Save Kirkcudbright Hospital Action Group will not give up their fight to get the hospital reopened despite labelling the Right Care, Right Place consultation as something of a sham.

“The vast majority of the local population want the hospital to be reopened to offer services as previously provided from the hospital.

“Instead the Right Care, Right Place group are suggesting that these services can be provided in the community or by commissioning extra beds in local care homes.

“The action group feel this is totally unacceptable and hard to see how our already overcrowded and understaffed care homes can suddenly be asked to provide more critical services.

“The action group have been in touch with other similar areas of Scotland where community or cottage hospitals still exist and thrive. Why is Dumfries and Galloway so different and so intent on centralisation of services?

“We believe the council has been hoodwinked in to believing that this is the only possible solution for this area. That is not true but the consultation appears to have been used to force through a policy of closing local hospitals, not just in the Kirkcudbright and Gatehouse area, but also in Newton Stewart, Thornhill and Moffat.

“Kirkcudbright and this area have already lost the courts and the police office. We need our council to stand up to senior management in the NHS and challenge this policy.”

A spokesman for Dumfries and Galloway Health and Social Care Partnership said: “The Right Care, Right Place workshop which took place in Kirkcudbright saw a lot of good and detailed discussion on the issues around intermediate care – picking up conversations from the extensive engagement work which took place last year.

“The workshop brought together local stakeholders and health and social care management for honest discussion around the current challenges and opportunities, and how best to meet future need. It should be noted that a variety of interesting and sometimes contrasting views were expressed among the local people who took part, and we welcome the mixture of views as we look to develop options for health and social care within communities, working together with communities.

“We will continue to work together with communities, including bodies such as Save Kirkcudbright Hospital Action Group, as we look to develop options for meeting local need. Ultimately, any decisions on future models of health and social care will sit with the integration joint board, and these will be informed by this ongoing engagement.”