THE opening hours of a North Yorkshire hospital's Minor Injuries Unit (MIU) have been slashed because of staff shortages, health chiefs have confirmed.

As revealed in last Friday's Evening Press, the Scarborough Whitby & Ryedale Primary Care Trust (PCT) will be scaling down the service from next Monday.

Instead of running the unit around the clock as at present, the MIU at Malton Hospital will only open from 8am to 9.30pm seven days a week.

Patients arriving for treatment outside those hours are faced with the option of ringing their GP, returning the next morning, or in the case of an emergency, using a hotline to the ambulance service that will be installed near the main entrance.

Hospital manager Mary Stevens said: "This situation is due to a combination of circumstances, including the problems experienced nationally in recruiting experienced nurses with the necessary skills needed for this specialist service.

"Advertisements have already gone out to recruit replacements. However, the Minor Injuries Unit is not closing. It will still be open seven days a week."

Mrs Stevens said that the MIU normally had ten staff working on a 24 hour rota but three had gone in quick succession for various reasons.

She said the evening closure had not been planned and although it was short notice for patients, they had informed people at the earliest opportunity.

The Scarborough Whitby & Ryedale Primary Care Trust (PCT) is working on developing an action plan to bring the MIU up to full staffing capacity in order to resume its usual service.

The PCT's director of Community Care Services, Kevin Pulford, said: "We are contacting all the emergency services, and other local organisations, to advise them of this situation. Action is being taken to ensure that this does not go on for too long and we will let everyone know when our usual service has been resumed.

"In the meantime, however, we would like to apologise to the public and thank them for their patience."

Updated: 10:22 Tuesday, July 20, 2004