GPs have backed Sutton's MPs by voting overwhelmingly against a proposed downgrade of St Helier Hospital in a secret ballot.
Sutton GPs responded to the ballot put together by MPs Paul Burstow and Tom Brake in response to proposals by the Better Services Better Value (BSBV) healthcare review, which is on hold.
Among the proposals set out in BSBV is the downgrading of St Helier by removing its maternity and A&E departments.
St Helier Hospital
A total of 32 voted against closing the maternity and A&E services at St Helier, with none voting in favour.
The same amount voted in favour of a separate process run by Sutton Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), the group in charge of Sutton’s healthcare, while one person voted against.
Just 33 out of Sutton's 124 GPs completed the ballot but Mr Burstow said he thought the reason for the low response was because Sutton CCG wrote to all of its GP practices stating the ballot was no longer relevant after BSBV was put on hold three weeks ago.
Paul Burstow said: "I think the CCG tried quite hard to put the GPs off taking part by telling them it was no longer relevant which may have led some of them not to participate.
"In the end you can only give people the opportunity to participate in the ballot and the overwhelming majority did [vote against BSBV] and only one voted the other way."
Tom Brake said: "What reassures me is the response was so overwhelming it is hard to see how the GPs who didn’t take part in the ballot would have had a view distinctly different from those who did participate."
The BSBV review has been delayed for a third time after Surrey and South Downs CCG voted against the proposed changes which led to the shock exit of Epsom Hospital from the review three weeks ago.
Dr Brendan Hudson, chairman of Sutton CCG said the CCGs in south west London were 'taking stock' of the situation following Surrey Downs CCG's withdrawal.
He said: "The BSBV pre-consultation business case is now invalid and the options put forward are not going to be put to a public consultation so the MP survey result is not surprising."
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