The announcement of the closure of a local A&E is familiar to most of us and there’s often a feeling of inevitability, despite the public outcry which usually follows.
This could have been the case in Halifax when Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust (CHFT) published proposals to reconfigure local services; however cuncillors in Calderdale decided try something different.
In February 2014 CHFT proposed that Calderdale and Huddersfield should share two specialist hospitals, one offering planned care, the other unplanned. The preferred option would lead to the closure of the A&E at Calderdale Royal Hospital in Halifax (pictured right).
Understandably local people reacted with hostility, organising protest marches, petitions and letters to the local newspaper.
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