It has been absolutely amazing to see the level of support that has been shown by the people of Liverpool and beyond, through the media, and whilst it gives us great pride and reassurance to know that so many people love Liverpool Women’s, our response is quite simple, there is absolutely no need to worry, the services we provide are under no threat at all.
We would like to take this opportunity to encourage you to follow our official channels of communication. We have an official Facebook page and also an official Twitter feed through which we will be issuing regular updates about what is happening at Liverpool Women’s. You can also sign up to become a member here to receive regular newsletters and apply to be on our council of governors too.
Liverpool has had a dedicated women's health service since 1796, that's well over 200 years! How these services were delivered, and where they were delivered from, has changed several times in this period, as is mapped out on our website. It is important to note that, throughout the history of the city, any changes made to women’s health services have always been for the better and, as the proud current custodians of these services, we are passionate these services remain as a cornerstone of this amazing city, but that we will take steps to give women and their families in the region the very best healthcare attainable.
The Trust is part of the Healthy Liverpool Programme, which involves every health provider in the city coming together and looking at how services can be better structured for the good of patients. Our doctors, midwives and nurses have been working together for several months to design a new blueprint for each of the services we provide, to ensure that every single person that requires our treatment has the very best experience that they can have. Clearly, this is a process that can’t be rushed, and we will continue to explore the options and possibilities over the next few months.
Once this process has been completed, we will need the help of every single one of you, our supporters. The next stage of the process will be for us to show you all of the work that we’ve done, and ask you for your opinion. We’ll do this through a range of events and communication channels and we’ll give you plenty of notice of how you can get involved when the time comes. We anticipate that this will happen later this year. If you sign up to be a member you can also tell us which of our services you are most interested in and we can then contact you directly to discuss our ideas.
For now though, our message is clear, Liverpool will continue to have health services dedicated to the care of women and their babies that will be the envy of the rest of the country for many generations to come… and that is a promise.
Dr Nadim Fazlani, Chair of Liverpool Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG):
"The Clinical Commissioning Group is extremely proud to have exemplary women’s services in our city. We want to reassure the public that we are committed to ensuring that women’s services remain in the city for the future.
"We are aware of the reported budget deficit for Liverpool Women’s Hospital for 2014/15. Four out of five foundation trusts involved in the provision of acute hospital services were reporting a deficit by last autumn, as disclosed by the public accounts committee, so Liverpool Women’s Hospital’s financial situation is not unusual in this financial year.
"Liverpool CCG, along with other commissioners, is working closely with Liverpool Women’s Hospital, Monitor – the FT regulator and other partners to support the trust.
"We wish to re-assure patients that maternity and women’s services in Liverpool are not under any threat and the quality and range of services will continue to develop and improve.
"As part of the Healthy Liverpool programme Liverpool Women’s Hospital clinicians are closely involved in a review of women’s and maternity services in the city, which is intended to further improve the quality of these services and to ensure their long term sustainability.
"This review is being led by clinicians and will involve patients and public. We are at an early stage in the process; no decisions have been made and options for the future of these services are still to be developed. It is clear that the people of Liverpool hugely value their maternity and women’s services and we hope that we can harness this interest to encourage patients and the public to get involved in this work to secure a sustainable future for these services."
“We are very confident that the services we, as doctors, are so proud to deliver at Liverpool Women’s are under no threat” – message from Miss Elisabeth Adams, Consultant Uro-Gynaecologist, Chair of Medical Staff Committee at Liverpool Women's