Dr Andrew Eynon-Lewis, GP principal, Dartmouth Medical Practice; Pierre Landell-Mills, chair, Dartmouth Patients Group; and Cllr Steve Smith, chair, Townstal Community Partnership, write:

Emma Royd set out in the Chronicle, September 23, the concerns of many Dartmouth residents at the NHS proposal to close Dartmouth Hospital.

We too feel sad about this. But after extensive discussions with local NHS managers,

we now understand that the ­proposal needs to be seen in the wider context of the overall plan for healthcare in the Dartmouth area.

We have raised many queries and listened carefully to their explanations and clarifications. We are now convinced that the NHS plan for future local healthcare has major advantages and merits public support. This is because the NHS is proposing to put resources into a range of local services that will result

in substantially improved ­healthcare for the people of Dartmouth and the surrounding areas.

A new Dartmouth Health and Well-being Centre will be established in Townstal, which will include a greatly improved GP surgery; at least four ­intermediate beds with NHS-supervised nursing; community clinics that are now available downtown; and a base for greatly enhanced care for patients in their homes. It will also help prompt and safe ­discharges from local hospitals.

Moreover, the plan includes recruiting and training nurses, therapists and carers locally to help overcome the shortages we presently face. The practice is in the process of recruiting a ­highly trained nursing specialist to join the team to help provide a wide array of services, including minor injury care.

The NHS has agreed with the owners of River View to a 35-year lease to accommodate these services, as well as to take over responsibility for the care home with the expectation that it will be run to a high standard. To have the GP practice, the clinics, the base for home-care support, the beds for rehab and palliative care, minor injuries care, nursing home care, voluntary organisations such as Dartmouth Caring and a pharmacy all under one roof would be fantastic and would represent a major step towards achieving more joined-up care. There will also be much easier parking.

The NHS plans to strengthen further the range of services available at Totnes Hospital and the minor injuries unit so that Dartmouth area patients will need to make fewer trips to Torbay Hospital. If agreed with the community, this can all be put in place during 2017.

It is not just a distant dream, so let’s all get behind it.