INCREASED travelling times by ambulance to hospital would not have affected 'potentially higher risk' patients, NHS chiefs have concluded.

Under Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group's (CCG) Clinical Services Review, a major shake-up of NHS services across the county, Poole Hospital's A&E will close, with an expanded emergency department at Royal Bournemouth Hospital.

The latest investigation, carried out by Dorset's most senior doctors and focussing on 34 cases of higher risk patients, found increased travel times would not have changed the outcomes for any of these patients.

However, campaign group Defend Dorset NHS has argued that travel times from more isolated areas, particularly areas like Purbeck, would risk lives.

A panel of clinicians, including senior A&E consultants and medical directors from each of Dorset’s acute hospitals, leading paramedics from South Western Ambulance Services Trust (SWAST) and a director of nursing, took part in the study.

The aim was to re-investigate whether or not extended journey times resulting from changes to hospital services may increase clinical risk and could affect the potential outcome for patients. The 34 patients reviewed were the same patients identified in the original 2017 SWAST report commissioned by Dorset CCG, which featured in the Daily Echo last week.

Poole Hospital medical director Dr Angus Wood said: "As a panel of clinicians from across Dorset and SWAST, we have thoroughly reviewed all 34 patients who were at potential increased clinical risk due to extended travel times and agreed that it would have made no difference to patient outcome.

"As consultant doctors and leading paramedics we are reassured that extended ambulance travel times would not put patients at any additional risk over and above the severity of their condition.

"It is important to understand that if you are unlucky enough to need urgent medical help and an ambulance is called, your treatment starts when the paramedics arrive and continues as you are conveyed to the most appropriate hospital where you care will continue.”

Campaigners argue the study failed to take account of the numbers of emergency cases that do not arrive at hospital via ambulance, and that it also failed to fully consider those patients who will live the furthest away from A&E care following the shake-up.

However, GP and chairman of NHS Dorset CCG, Dr Forbes Watson, said: "We have known all along that the most important factors are getting ambulances on the scene quickly for the most serious of cases and then getting patient to the most appropriate facilities with specialist staff, even if this means travelling past the nearest hospital.

"This review by some of Dorset’s most senior clinicians has reaffirmed this fact

"There are inaccuracies being circulated and I would encourage anyone who wants to find out the facts and be assured these changes are the best thing for people in Dorset to read the report and make up their own mind."

Visit www.dorsetsvision.nhs.uk and follow the 'news' link to view their findings.