Residents pledge their support for Teddington Memorial Hospital
Over three hundred concerned residents pledged their support for Teddington Memorial Hospital (TMH) at a recent packed out public meeting at Teddington Baptist Church.
The meeting was organised by The League of Friends of Teddington Memorial Hospital and local General Practitioners, in response to their concerns about the future of the Hospital.
Since April 2011, TMH has come under the control of Hounslow and Richmond Community Healthcare NHS Trust (HRCH). The Trust is currently applying to obtain Foundation Trust status, which would include the ownership of the hospital. If such a Trust were formed, it would be comparatively small and could therefore be exposed to a further merger – a potential move that worries GPs that it would cease to be a ‘community hospital’.
Chairman of Teddington Society, Baroness Jenny Hilton chaired the meeting and opened the event commenting, “Teddington Memorial Hospital is a wonderful local resource and I am so pleased to see so much support here tonight for our hospital.”
Local General Practitioners iterated that the hospital should remain locally accountable and responsive to local needs, adding that the GPs strongly support finding an alternative way to secure the future of the hospital – a move overwhelmingly supported by the audience in a vote (350 for, 3 against).
Another meeting will be held at the same venue in January to report the progress of this work any other news back to the community. You can read more about the history of the hospital here.
