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Little Cairnie reassurances just ‘double speak’, says councillor

Councillor David Fairweather outside the hospital.
Councillor David Fairweather outside the hospital.

NHS Tayside would be going back on its word if an Angus hospital closes before alternative facilities are put in place, it has been claimed.

A cloud is hanging over Little Cairnie Hospital in Arbroath, which could be shut as part of plans to reshape health services in south Angus.

The chairwoman of the League of Friends of Arbroath Infirmary and Little Cairnie Hospital said a commitment was made by NHS chiefs last May to not close the small hospital until palliative care rooms were introduced at Arbroath Infirmary but she is resigned to the axe eventually falling.

Another campaigner who has raised thousands of pounds for the hospital since her brother died there said she was certain the doors to the “perfect” facility would close before the infirmary upgrade is complete.

NHS Tayside said it hoped moves would begin within months on a project that will lead to improvements in palliative care at Arbroath Infirmary.

Friends chairwoman Jacqueline Cargill said the refurbishment was still at the planning stage and she had concerns this would not be sufficient to meet demand.

She said: “I don’t think there’s any doubt that Little Cairnie will close. It is an old building and money hasn’t been spent on it so it’s deteriorated.

“We were told Little Cairnie would stay open until such time that new facilities would be provided.

“I think you have to be realistic and know that the future of Little Cairnie is very much on a short time frame.”

Bill Nicoll, director of primary and community services for NHS Tayside, said this week “no decision” had been taken to close Little Cairnie.

Carol Shand, who has raised thousands of pounds for Little Cairnie since her brother Graeme Beattie died there three years ago following a fight with cancer, told The Courier: “My concern is that they are going to close Little Cairnie down and they are not going to have a replacement.

“They say that no decision has been taken but how stupid do they think people are?

“They are going to move the patients out, then move out the staff and then have no intentions of opening it again.

“I’d bet my bottom dollar they’ll shut Little Cairnie before the refurbishment work starts at Arbroath Infirmary.

“If they do that then they’ll be going back on their word.

“The care my brother received there was first class. It was the perfect place with excellent staff and beautiful grounds.”

NHS Tayside will hold a series of engagement events with staff and the public to look at the way care is delivered for older people in south Angus with an emphasis on the elderly living independently for as long as possible.

Arbroath councillor David Fairweather said Little Cairnie had seen a run-down of its capacity from four wards, to two wards and then one ward with 12 beds.

“The NHS Tayside statement that no decision has been made to close Little Cairnie sounds to me like double speak.

“Over the last few years the hospital has seen gradual closure of its wards and words that no decision has been made will run hollow and be of little comfort to the staff.

“Closure of Little Cairnie will have a huge detrimental effect on patients and families who look to this facility for care of loved ones and respite during difficult times when support is most needed.”