HEALTH chiefs have insisted that emergency care at Dorset County Hospital will be largely unaffected by a proposed reconfiguration of acute hospital services in the county.

Papers published yesterday revealed that the Dorset CCG (Clinical Commissioning Group) has earmarked the Royal Bournemouth Hospital as its preferred option for a major emergency centre, a move that would see Poole Hospital designated as a major planned care hospital.

The two hospitals in the east of the county were both considered for the major emergency status, with Dr Phil Richardson - the CCG's programme director for design and transformation - stating that the estimated cost of converting Bournemouth is £42million less than if Poole is the major emergency hospital.

Both options are expected to deliver a £30million annual saving but Bournemouth was also chosen by the CCG as its preferred option for the major emergency site as it is deemed to offer better access for the majority of the population served by the hospital.

Chief officer Tim Goodson said that for Dorset County Hospital it would mean around one or two per cent of patients treated by ambulance services would be taken to Bournemouth instead of Dorchester if it was considered their needs would be better served at the major emergency centre.

He said: "Dorset County Hospital will remain a 24/7 A&E service so there will be very little change there at all."

Dr Richardson added: "Dorset County Hospital is unchanged and continues to be a key hospital to serve the people of west Dorset."

Mr Goodson said that the future of paediatric and maternity services at Dorset County Hospital, which was recently the subject of an independent review by the The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, was still being considered in light of that review and its recommendations and no new proposals had yet been put forward.

He did concede that if it was decided either of the services were to move to the east of the county then they would transfer to the major emergency centre, meaning patients and their families would face travelling to Bournemouth if the CCG's preferred option is implemented and a decision is made to relocate services.

Naomi Patterson, who has been among those campaigning to keep services at Dorset County Hospital said the decision was "really frustrating".

She said: "I think it's just totally dismissing what everybody is thinking and they obviously haven't taken into consideration the travelling times.

"I really feel for people from places like Bridport, Portland and Lyme Regis.

"I can't see it's going to work at all to be honest."

The decision on the preferred option for the major emergency hospital will be considered by the CCG's governing body on Wednesday, May 18.

Both options will still go out to public consultation in the autumn, although the preferred option will be indicated, and a final decision is not expected to be made until 2017.

COST and location are the key reasons the Royal Bournemouth Hospital (RBH) has been recommended for development as the county's major emergency hub.

CCG transformation director Phil Richardson said more patients would travel to the new hub from east Dorset than from the west, as Dorset County Hospital's A&E service would remain largely unchanged.

"The key reasons for choosing Bournemouth are, first of all, access to the population served by the hospital. Bournemouth serves Dorset and Hampshire," he said.

"The other thing is value for money, there is a difference in cost of £42 million which can therefore be invested differently if Bournemouth is chosen."