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Daily delivers 20,000 reasons to save health services on patch

A 20,000-name strong petition calling on health bosses to protect local hospital services has been handed over by a regional daily.

The Dorset Echo has passed on the petition as part of its ‘Hands Off Our Wards’ campaign, launched after proposals emerged to move inpatient services from Dorset County Hospital, in Dorchester, to Bournemouth or Poole.

The petition was handed over to Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group by eight-year-old Lexi Hopkin, who was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour in January and was give nine to 12 months to live.

A total of 20,755 people put their name to the Echo’s petition, which provided a splash for the newspaper yesterday, pictured below, while a further 6,000 signed a petition set up by campaigners online.

Dorset wards

Accepting the petition, Dorset CCG assistant clinical chair Dr Karen Kirkham said the organisation would take notice of the “ground swell” of opinion as it prepared for a public consultation phase early next year.

Currently the CCG is planning to put two options forward for the future of the children’s services, one would see the fully fledged service remain in Dorchester and the other would see the hospital downgraded to a paediatric assessment unit with inpatient services transferred to the east of Dorset.

Echo editor Diarmuid Macdonagh said: “The overwhelming public support for our petition shows how much residents of west Dorset value the services at Dorset County Hospital.

“Over the course of the Hands off our Wards campaign we have spoken to families with children who, without the services at DCH, simply wouldn’t be here.

“When decision time comes, we hope that the voices of the many thousands of people who have signed the petition will be heard.”