THE closure of the inpatient ward at Bromyard Community Hospital has been halted thanks to dedicated nursing staff.

Last month Wye Valley NHS Trust announced it would be forced to temporarily close the ward on or before Friday, September 11 due to a shortage of nurses.

But today the organisation announced they would be able to keep the ward open thanks to staff at the hospital agreeing to work extra hours and different shifts.

Trust chief executive Richard Beeken said he and his colleagues were committed to keeping the ward open where possible.

“I’m pleased to announce that having worked closely with hospital staff and, thanks to their professionalism and commitment, we’ve been able to agree a way forward which enables us to safely run the inpatient ward round the clock and reduce our use of agency and bank staff,” he said.

But he added this was only a short-term measure and the trust continued to face problems with recruitment and retention of staff, which had meant the organisation had been forced to rely on expensive agency staff.

Mr Beeken said: “We will continue to explore every available avenue to ensure we keep the ward open in the long term and the situation will remain under continuous review.

“The trust is already doing all it can to encourage nurses to come to work in our hospitals.

“This includes the launch of a recruitment campaign last week which culminates in an open day for potential new staff later this month.

“If there are any nurses who have left the profession and would like to return to nursing, we’d like to hear from them.

“There is a national shortage of nurses - a problem more challenging in a rural county like Herefordshire which does not have the big city appeal of more urban areas of the country.”

The 14-bed ward is mostly used for patients recovering following treatment at Hereford County Hospital.

The trust had previously vowed to review the decision in December, or earlier if it was possible to recruit staff.

Mr Beeken paid tribute to the dedicated nursing staff at Bromyard Community Hospital for making it possible to halt the closure.

“It has also been heartening to see the level of support the hospital has received from the local community in recent weeks,” he said.

Rotas at the hospital will remain under constant review to ensure patients were given the best and safest possible care.

Among services offered by the hospital are ophthalmology diagnostic physiological measurement.