League calls for answers to key questions

At last night's meeting, East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust director of operations Jim Davey undertook a self-imposed list of tasks.

He pledged to give the league a definite start-date for the 80,000 new ultrasound scanner for Bexhill Hospital's radiography department.

The league's general committee voted on the spot to buy a second scanner for the hospital following a demonstration in the department, the aim being to reduce to a minimum the time in ordering the machine.

One year on, last night's meeting was told the scanner is sitting in a cupboard awaiting installation.

Mr Davey said there were radiation safeguards and other health and safety procedures to be undertaken before such a machine could be installed but hoped it would be in use by the end of next March.

Members were concerned that requests from Bexhill Hospital for new equipment which had been submitted at the end of October were not being presented to them at the meeting for consideration.

At the suggestion of league chairman Stuart Earl, Mr Davey pledged to investigate this and to initiate an e-mail system to speed the referral of future bids to the league.

Members were concerned to have discovered when checking arrangements for next year's hospital garden party that the day hospital at the Irvine Unit would no longer be available as it was being converted into offices.

The league recently funded a 1.1m refurbishment of the Irvine Unit. Members told Mr Davey this had been done for the benefit of patients - not to provide office space.

Though East Sussex Hospital NHS Trust does not run the hospital's Irvine Unit, Mr Davey pledged to check with Hastings and Rother Primary Care Trust.

Full story in Friday's Observer.