26 March 2024
The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH) has closed its Chronic Pain Service to new patient referrals.
The closure is due to the Trust’s specialist clinician leaving. It means the Trust is no longer able to accept any new referrals from the specialist community pain management service or other routes. Instead, patients requiring hospital care will be referred to an alternative provider.
Patients currently waiting for treatment have been contacted and will continue to be seen.
Sara Biffen, Acting Chief Operating Officer for The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, said: “We would like to apologise to anyone who is impacted by the closure of the Chronic Pain Service.
“Although this service change affects a small number of people, we recognise that new referrals may need to travel further for their treatment.”
NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, as the organisation responsible for planning and buying NHS services, is working with local healthcare partners to develop a plan for the future provision of chronic pain services.
What is the Chronic Pain Service at SaTH?
Patients are referred by their GP into the specialist community pain management service called Connect Health. For a small proportion of patients, Connect Health then referred to the Chronic Pain Service at SaTH for specialist interventions including injections, radiofrequency lesioning and spinal cord stimulation.
Will I receive financial support for travelling to a different provider?
Some service users may be eligible for help with health costs. For more information, visit: https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/help-with-health-costs/