York Hospital will get "smaller", one of its bosses has predicted.

Nursing director Mike Proctor told a meeting of councillors: "If you look to the future, there's no doubt that York Hospital will be a smaller hospital.

"My belief and hope is that we can have a smaller hospital that's just as successful."

Mr Proctor was speaking at a meeting of City of York Council's Social Services and Health Scrutiny Board - a group of councillors charged with scrutinising adult social services and local health trusts - as health providers prepare for the impact of Selby and York Primary Care Trust's (PCT) financial recovery plan to cut millions in health spending.

The PCT needs to save £23 million over the next year - before inroads are even made into its £23.7 million debt - and it has already said this will mean cutting hospital admissions with schemes put in place to provide alternative care.

The meeting heard how a turnaround team sent in to the PCT by the Government had identified that the city had a high hospital referral rate from GPs.

Mr Proctor said at the meeting: "My experience of the York population is that they are particularly well-informed - they research about their illness and they actually ask specific questions.

"The PCT has got to look at its provider role to make sure the services they

provide that are an alternative to hospital care are at least as good as the hospital care that's provided now.

"As an organisation, we have got to make sure that as the work reduces we reduce our costs appropriately as well, because otherwise there will be just a shift of deficit from one organisation to another.

"I think we could do this really well, given time. The PCT, to be fair to them, have got a task to do.

"The next year for health is going to be a very difficult one."

He has said in the past hospital beds could be cut if more patients with conditions like angina are treated at home under Government plans.

Now councillors will scrutinise the PCT's finance recovery plan when it is made public.

Board chairman Ian Cuthbertson, pictured left, said: "I believe we should be saying to the PCT quite clearly 'You have taken some time to announce this

recovery plan that we knew was going to be needed... last year'.

"I don't want to make that into a very negative comment about the PCT.

"I do want to say 'I don't think that's served anybody'."

Public debate on financial troubles

SEVERE financial difficulties facing health trusts across North Yorkshire will be debated in public next week.

Senior health officials will be on hand to give an update on the financial position facing local NHS trusts when North Yorkshire County Council's Scrutiny of Health Committee meets on Tuesday.

The latest estimates suggest that by the end of the next financial year, spending in the county's health economy will need to be cut by between £80 and £90 million.

According to a report considered in February, NHS organisations in the area were facing a forecast total deficit of £47.2 million for 2005/6.

Committee chairman Coun John Blackie said: "£90 million is approximately the cost of running a district general hospital, such as Scarborough Hospital, for one year.

"So it is not surprising that there are huge concerns being voiced locally on the very detrimental impact that saving this amount may have on frontline

services."

The public meeting is being held at 10am in County Hall, Northallerton, on Tuesday.

Updated: 09:44 Saturday, May 13, 2006