§ Mr. Lathamasked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will give an assurance that he will attach full weight, in his regular discussions on resources with chairman of regional hospital authorities, to the publicly expressed wishes of patients and community health councils that maternity units should be retained in general practitioner hospitals located in county towns serving rural areas; and whether he will make a statement.
§ Mr. John PattenResponsibility for determining the pattern of maternity services best suited to local needs and circumstances must rest with the district health authority concerned. We accept the view of the maternity services advisory committee, whose two reports we have commended to regional and district health authorities, that
Ideally GP maternity facilities should be integral or adjacent to Consultant units. In some localities, however, geographic factors will require the continued availability of GP units distant from the Consultant unit.We therefore expect GP maternity facilities to continue to play an important role within the range of services provided and that authorities, when proposing changes or developments should take this fully into account along with the views of users as expressed through community health councils. Whenever proposals to close or change the use of a GP hospital are opposed by CHCs and come to the Secretary of State for final decision, their views are always considered carefully, along with other factors such as the use made of the facility in question, its size, location and the availability of other services.