MORE than 60 jobs are to go at an Essex hospital trust as part of a cost-cutting exercise designed to help turn around a £15million deficit.The posts to be made redundant include 15 in nursing and midwifery, 23 in administration, three in management and a further 16 among various health professionals.

By Roddy Ashworth

MORE than 60 jobs are to go at an Essex hospital trust as part of a cost-cutting exercise designed to help turn around a £15million deficit.

The posts to be made redundant include 15 in nursing and midwifery, 23 in administration, three in management and a further 16 among various health professionals.

Five medical jobs will also be shed by Essex Rivers Healthcare NHS Trust, which runs Colchester General Hospital.

Health bosses hope the majority of staff affected will be redeployed into alternative jobs but yesterday admitted “separate arrangements” might have to be made with a handful of employees.

The job cuts come as a result of a financial review, which looked at all areas to see where cost efficiencies and improved services could be achieved.

The trust said yesterday that it was almost two-thirds towards reaching an initial savings target of £7.8m by March 31, 2007.

Yesterday trust chairman Richard Bourne said: “We have already been creating the ability to do this by changing the structure of the organisation and not appointing to certain vacant posts.

“The majority of the posts which will be going are unoccupied at the moment. The trust has nearly 3,000 jobs but at any one time they are not all occupied.

“The total number of jobs to go is 63. There are 23 people in jobs which are going, but we think we can re-deploy most of them. However we may have to reach separate arrangements with those we cannot re-deploy.”

Trust chief executive Peter Murphy said: “During the past six months we have always sought to avoid any compulsory redundancies and that remains our position.

“Clearly, to be successful in this aim will require flexibility, but we are confident this can be achieved.”

Union representatives Barbara Rush and Mary Russell said the trust was engaging with them on the service and cost improvement plan.

Ms Rush said: “Regrettably, this will cause some staff to be redeployed into alternative posts.

“The trust has given an assurance that it will seek to avoid any compulsory redundancies and that they will be fully consulting with both the Staff Side [union representatives] and individuals to minimise the impact on staff and the organisation.”