A HOSPITAL boss has warned of the pressures staff are facing maintaining services as it draws up plans for what it will be able to provide in future.

Adrian Clements, medical director at the Friarage Hospital, in Northallerton, said when South Tees NHS Trust launched the review due to staffing shortages at the infirmary it had given a commitment that all its services would be maintained as they stood throughout the process.

Mr Clements told North Yorkshire County Council’s scrutiny of health committee he appreciated residents were anxious to learn about proposed changes to services, but due to his determination to come up with the best safe, high quality and sustainable offer, the process had suffered some delays.

The CCG’s chief officer Janet Probert said she thought it most likely a finalised set of options on the hospital’s future would now not be published for a public consultation before the autumn.

She told the meeting: “The biggest issue that led to this is sustaining the workforce at the Friarage.

“So no one is going to stop working as hard as they can on this because there are real challenges on maintaining some services now.”

Mr Clements said maintaining all the services at the hospital until an option was agreed would be “a challenge”.

He said: “I have been having some meetings with colleagues this week to ensure – because there has been some slippage in the timelines – we can maintain services. I have been receiving reassurances that as we stand we can, but that can be a daily, weekly or monthly issue. It is challenging to those clinicians who all accepted at the start of this process that the status quo is unsustainable, and as that status quo continues it really is a challenge to people.

Mr Clements told members preparing the options had proved a complicated process.

He said: “I will put my hand up now and accept blame for any delays that are taking place – we cannot move forward with those clinical scenarios unless we are happy they are robust.”