Heart services switch challenge heads to High Court (From York Press)

Heart services switch challenge heads to High Court

9:31am Friday 5th October 2012 in News

CAMPAIGNERS have confirmed a legal challenge will be launched against the NHS’s decision to move child heart surgery services from Yorkshire.

The Save Our Surgery (SOS) campaign had been considering a High Court challenge since the announcement that Leeds General Infirmary was to lose its paediatric children’s heart unit to Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital.

Sharon Cheng, of SOS, said: “It’s with great regret and reluctance that Save Our Surgery has decided to lodge this application for legal action. Quite simply, we feel we’ve been left with no alternative after all other options put forward were rejected outright by the senior NHS officials responsible.”

Kevin Watterson, congenital heart surgeon and SOS campaigner, said: “We are fighting to keep children safe and we believe that challenging the decision is the only way of doing that at this stage.”

Sir Neil McKay, one of those behind the decision to move the service to Newcastle, said the legal action “flies in the face” of support for the changes.

He said: “We stand ready to defend our process and our decision with confidence.”