Private healthcare firm to pull out of NHS hospital

Circle, which has managed Hinchingbrooke Hospital in Cambridgeshire since February 2012, says it has pumped in almost £5m to prop up Hinchingbrooke healthcare trust, meaning it would have the right to terminate the franchise.

It said there had been an unprecedented rise in the number of accident and emergency patients, a lack of care places for those awaiting discharge and funding had been cut by 10.1 per cent this year.

Unions branded the deal a “dangerous government experiment” which was destined to fail.

Labour said the coalition appointed Circle in November 2011 and so “must take responsibility for the mess”.

Shadow health secretary Andy Burnham said: “Patients who rely on Hinchingbrooke will be worried about their hospital following this announcement and ministers must provide urgent reassurance and set out a plan to ensure the continuity of services at the hospital in this uncertain time.

“The government were explicitly warned two years ago about the risky business model Circle were operating, but failed to take any action.”

Disappointing news on Hinchingbrooke,but @andyburnhammp must stop playing politics – he signed off decision to allow private sector operator

— Jeremy Hunt (@Jeremy_Hunt) January 9, 2015

Health secretary Jeremy Hunt hit back in a series of tweets. He said: “This government makes no apology for seeking solutions for failing hospitals. We won’t be deterred from tackling poor care and driving up standards.”

The company said conditions “significantly worsened” in recent weeks, adding that it had already pumped £4.84m into the trust and would be “highly likely” to have to make further support payments that would breach the £5m cap.

It said it was facing an imminent report from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) which it expected to be “unbalanced”.

Circle Chief Executive Steve Melton said a combination of factors made its continued involvement “unsustainable”.

He said: “Like most hospitals, over the past year Hinchingbrooke saw unprecedented A&E attendances and not enough care places for healthy patients awaiting discharge.

“At the same time, our funding has been cut. We also believe that inconsistent and conflicting regulatory regimes compound the challenge for acute hospitals in this environment.”

Peter Carter, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, said: “This is deeply worrying news for staff and patients and further highlights the major financial crisis facing the NHS, and the daily pressure facing staff.

“Hinchingbrooke was one of the first NHS hospitals to be taken over by a private provider and at the time many considered this kind of arrangement to be the way forward for the health service. This announcement shows that private sector involvement is not always the answer.”