A LUDLOW councillor and working nurse believes that health chiefs have got it wrong in going for a single Accident and Emergency Unit in Shrewsbury.

“No one now believes Future Fit is the new future,” said Tracey Huffer, who represents Ludlow east on Shropshire Council and is a nurse at a GP practice in the town.

All it seems be trying to do is fix the past. Putting sticking plasters on major wounds.

“There is going to be a lot of argument about whether this is the right decision.

“The decision might fit the future of the NHS finances, but it doesn’t fit the future of our county.

“We can’t ignore the hard truth. That hard truth is that the joint Clinical Commissioning Groups decided to centralise services. The focus in on A&E. But the Groups are quietly cutting community transport services back to the bone.

“People won’t be able to get to Telford from Ludlow for planned care without a whole day of complicated travel or an expensive taxi service.

“Once again there has been no consideration of the impact on rural areas like Ludlow.”

But health chiefs say that the decision is best for patients partly because there are problems staffing units in Shrewsbury and Telford.