Health warning: Downgrade the hospital and people will pay with their lives

National health planners, desperate to find multi-million savings to balance the books, could target both Worthing and Chichester hospitals in their bid to slash 100million off the regional debt.

The Herald has been branded as "alarmist" by regional health boss Candy Morris for headlining the threat, but this week, two of Worthing's most experienced consultants confirmed that cuts or total closure were being considered and said the result of either would be a "disaster".

Dr Mark Signy, consultant cardiologist, said the current plans were the product of "muddled thinking" and said that many heart attack patients would die if they had to travel further afield than Worthing for emergency treatment.

And colleague Dr Lui Forni, senior consultant in intensive therapy and renal medicine at Worthing, said: "If you live in the largest town in West Sussex and you fall off your motorcycle, you may well die getting to Brighton or Portsmouth if there is no accident and emergency here. Close these services and people will pay for the decision with their lives."

Read the full interviews in this week's Herald.