NHS England will work with senior surgeons to lead the development of detailed proposals for the future of vascular services in Southern Hampshire following a review led by the Vascular Society.

The expert clinical review of services in southern Hampshire concluded that change is needed to ensure services are compliant with the standards set by the Vascular Society to provide safe, high quality services for patients and to meet the requirement in the future to provide 7 day working across the NHS.

Following a review at hospitals in Portsmouth and Southampton the Vascular Society of Great Britain and Ireland identified a range of issues at both hospitals that need addressing to ensure high quality sustainable services in the future. Their report recommended the best way of securing resilient services would be the creation of a southern Hampshire network of vascular (arterial) services with University Hospital Southampton operating as the single hub for the county and the Isle of Wight.

“We want to end the uncertainty for patients and for staff and have asked surgeons and senior managers to work together to develop detailed options for the future of vascular services across south Hampshire and the Isle of Wight based on the recommendations of the Vascular Society review” said NHS England medical director for Wessex, Dr Liz Mearns.

“The detail of these options needs to be developed by surgeons working together and we will then be in a position to consult in a meaningful way with patients and the public about how any proposed changes will impact on them” added Dr Mearns.