NHS AND COUNCIL MUST RETHINK PLAN TO CLOSE HEMEL HOSPITAL
Health group says NHS and Dacorum Council must rethink plans to Hemel Hempstead Hospital
- 11,000 more homes are planned in the new Hemel Hempstead Garden Communities – but the NHS plans to close Hemel Hempstead Hospital
- Dacorum Health Action Group (DHAG) says more and better health services are needed for the Borough to meet the future health demands of an ageing population, with nearly 40% more over-65s in the next 20 years
- Instead, the NHS and Council are proposing an inadequate replacement – a Health Campus or Hub in Hemel’s Market Square. This single building on a cramped site would be too small to accommodate the expanded services vitally needed for the Borough’s ageing and growing population
- Parking would be a nightmare at the proposed Hub. The current Hospital has over 400 car spaces – which would disappear under the plans. Where would patients and their families park at the Hub?
- DHAG says in comments on the draft Dacorum Local Plans the proposals would mean Dacorum Council failing in its legal duty to plan the infrastructure to support the ‘required facilities’ for future hospital care in the Borough as the population ages and grows
DHAG’s response to the draft Dacorum Local Plan is here: