Hospital Services in South Manchester

The south of Manchester is currently served by the University Hospital of South Manchester (UHSM) Wythenshawe. UHSM Wythenshawe currently has an A&E department, specialist centres for Cystic Fibrosis, burns and plastic surgery, and also carries out emergency general surgery (surgery to the abdominal cavity).

Under the Healthier Together programme for Greater Manchester a major restructuring of health services has been planned. In 2014 a public consultation was launched in Greater Manchester in order to help decide which hospitals would become ‘Specialist’ and which ‘General’.

On 15 July 2015, Heathier Together announced the final decisions had been made: UHSM Wythenshawe would not be classed as a Specialist hospital but a General one, whereas Stepping Hill would be the Specialist hospital providing for the Southern sector. Each sector will now have one Specialist hospital working together with the local General hospitals in the sector to provide a ‘Single Service’.

In the Manchester South & Central sector, Wythenshawe, Trafford and the Manchester Royal Infirmary (MRI) will work in partnership as a ‘Single Service’ – the MRI will act as the Specialist Hospital with the others classed as local General Hospitals. Specialist and emergency general surgery will no longer take place at UHSM Wythenshawe.

Healthier Together have sought to reassure the public that Wythenshawe will retain its existing specialist departments including:

• Heart, lung and vascular services;
• Burns care and plastic surgery;
• Breast cancer and screening; and the
• Cystic Fibrosis centre.

According to Healthier Together, the new ‘Single Service’ has the potential to save up to 300 lives per year. The project is estimated to cost an additional £25m to £50, and will take around three years to implement.

This pack, to accompany the Westminster Hall debate being held by Mike Kane on Tuesday 8 September 2015, provides a more detailed summary of the future provision of hospital services in south Manchester, as well as relevant media articles, press releases and Parliamentary material.

Debate packs are intended to provide a summary or overview of the issues being debated and identify any relevant briefings including press and parliamentary material. A more deailed briefing may be prepared for a Member on request to the Library.