REACH - Restore Emergency at Cheltenham General Hospital

22/09/2026

https://fb.watch/v/eSZ9CqXsL/

20/09/2026

https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1510994054397854&set=a.618662340297701

“Until we recognise it as a problem, we can’t fix the problem. We work in a toxic culture in the NHS, and something needs to change because more and more of us are feeling like it’s not the place that we should be.
“So many colleagues are reaching out saying they are burning out and are so sad and so scared of all the pressures on them and of getting things wrong. It’s an epidemic, really, and something has to be done about it.”
Our GP co-lead Dr Sarah Jacques has spoken to the BMJ about the pressures facing healthcare workers and the culture in the NHS as she welcomed an online memorial wall for health and care workers who have died by su***de.
"It’s incredibly sad that it has to exist at all, but it is really important because I just don’t think the general population thinks about what happens to us [healthcare workers] as people," she said.
Read the BMJ article in full at https://www.bmj.com/content/394/bmj-2026-100897.full

09/09/2026

In better news:

Home birth services will also be reinstated across Gloucestershire after being paused in late 2025.

09/09/2026

The ongoing crisis in A&E Departments across the UK has led to an increase in medical negligence claims against the NHS.
Unsurprisingly claims fell during the pandemic, when many A&E Departments were closed, or people were frightened of going to them for fear of catching COVID.
"An analysis by the BBC shows there has been a 41% rise in cases over the past five years, with doctors linking it to the long delays and pressures being seen in emergency departments."
"It means A&E is now the single biggest area for clinical negligence claims in terms of number. The value of those claims exceeded £550m last year."
The Keough Report in 2013 recommended the closure of around half of the A&E Departments in England (from around 140 to 70). Since then that is exactly what has happened, increasing the pressure on the remaining A&E Departments.
This was reflected in Gloucestershire, where one of the two A&E Departments, Cheltenham, is no longer a genuine Type 1 A&E Department, even during the day. All emergency patients (except stroke patients) are now taken to A&E in Gloucester.

Oli's experience is one of a growing number of clinical negligence claims being made in England, BBC analysis shows.

28/08/2026

All over the country, local communities are demanding the restorations of their Hospital A&E Departments. Most of them should never have been closed in the first place.
While it may make sense to concentrate specialist medicine on single sites - although even this has its downsides for families and friends wanting to visit patients in hospital, an important part of recovery - Type 1 (comprehensive) Accident & Emergency Departments need to be as near to the communities they serve as possible, so they are as accessible as possible.
We hope the new Health Secretary will consider how this can be achieved - it would certainly gain a lot of suipport.

An urgent treatment centre at Grantham and District Hospital has been in operation since 2023.

28/08/2026

Sadly the Care Quality Commission - the Health & Social Care Regulator - has downgraded Gloucestershire Hospitals Trust to 'Requires Improvement'.

On the five key metrics - of 'Safe', 'Effective', 'Caring', 'Responsive' and 'Well-led' the Trust was only judged to be 'Good' on 'Caring - the service provided by frontline Hospital staff:

Safe - Requires improvement
Effective - Requires improvement
Caring - Good
Responsive - Requires improvement
Well-led - Requires improvement

Overall - Requires improvement

This is a damning indictment of the current Hospital Trust's management. Even the previous management had succeeded in getting Gloucestershire up to a 'Good' rating, despite unsatisfactory performances in certain areas.

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06/08/2026

We haven't seen any news on this from the Hospital Trust, but this is a post from the local Unite the Union branch. It gives us a 'heads-up' on proposed developments at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital.

06/08/2026

Prof Maynard, a surgeon based in Oxford, has worked in Gaza for many for many years, training Palestinian doctors as well as performing complex operations himself .
He was awarded the Humanitarian Medal by King Charles for his work in Gaza.

If anyone is interested, Prof Maynard will be speaking at a meeting in Cheltenham on Friday 4th September. Details below.

03/08/2026

Stroke patients are now supposed to be taken by emergency ambulances directly to the Stroke Ward in CGH. REACH has been informed the CT scanners at CGH are down again, due to the extreme heat.
This means emergency ambulances are now having to take stroke patients to GRH. Since there are no longer any specialist Stroke facilities at GRH, stroke patients have to be admitted to the Acute Medical Unit (AMU), until they can be transferred to the Stroke Ward in CGH.
Everyone has heard of "The 'Golden Hour'" relating to strokes. "Originally developed in the setting of trauma treatment, the term the “golden hour” is now a general concept in emergency medicine that is applied to conditions in which hyperacute therapy is more effective than later intervention, including trauma, myocardial ischemia, septic shock, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and stroke."