THE head of York Hospital has criticised the area’s PCT and other major health organisations and said more should have been done to ensure services worked together.

Alan Rose, chairman of York Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, said managers at NHS North Yorkshire and York had failed to engage with the community.

Speaking to about 70 people at the AGM of York Older people’s Assembly yesterday, Mr Rose acknowledged that the PCT had the unenviable task of “rationing healthcare” but said: “I don’t feel as though the management in recent years has been leading edge.”

Addressing those gathered at the Friends Meeting House, in Friargate, he said the Trust had not built strong relationships in the area with the council, GPs, hospital and “the public they are supposed to serve”.

Mr Rose went on to describe York’s GPs as “pretty good” but said: “Their contractual obligations are not always well thought through, leading to patchy services.”

York Hospital was also singled out and he said the Wigginton Road site itself was now suffering from the effects of scrimping during its construction.

“We are suffering from a building which in its initial construction in the 1970s was inexpensive – that’s coming home to roost in terms of things such as lifts breaking down and a lot of money is having to be spent on maintenance,” he said.

Despite the criticisms, Mr Rose went on to give a positive prognosis for the future of health services in North Yorkshire and York in the face of the Government’s planned reforms of the NHS, which will see GP consortia responsible for spending health budgets.

“I think the effects on a local level will be positive,” he said.

“In terms of our GPs I feel genuinely positive about the vale of York Health Group. There’s a good leadership and good board.

“There are excellent standards in terms of the commissioning role they will have in our community.”