EMERGENCY services at Bury's hospitals are on the verge of collapse because there is not enough money to pay for doctors.

The intensive care department drastically needs four consultant anaesthetists - without them it will fall below national guidelines and will have to close.

Hospital chairman Mr John Bradley said: "We are in a crisis situation. Unless action is taken we will not have an intensive care unit, meaning we will not have accident and emergency and we will not have a hospital.

"Just because we have always kept going, doesn't mean we always will; collapse can be quick and that is the hard reality."

He was backed by hospital medical director, Dr Previn Kotak who said: "We are talking about the breakdown of core services and this has to be taken seriously.

"If it happens the medical profession must not be blamed because we have warned and warned about what might happen."

In a highly-charged Trust meeting on Tuesday, members of the board accused Bury and Rochdale Health Authority, who fund the hospital, of withholding money that could be used to remedy their crisis. Mr Phillip Bacon, chief executive of Bury Health Care NHS Trust said: "We are one of the most efficient hospitals in the country and so we have no spare money. I want to know where all the health authority's money is going."

But chairman Mr Alan Maden says the cash-strapped authority are battling with problems of their own. He said: "We can't just reach onto a shelf and take down money because there isn't any there. We are constantly facing difficult choices and there are no easy options. "

Hospital bosses have been trying to recruit one anaesthetist for the last three years, but nobody wants the job because of the long hours in Bury's short-staffed intensive care department.

According to Dr Kotek: "Doctors will not apply for jobs here because we have a bad reputation as far as anaesthetics is concerned. They take one look at the workload and they don't want to come. We are not going to appoint anybody until we can appoint four at once."

The Royal College of Anaesthetists says Bury must have the staff increase or it will lose their stamp of approval, effectively meaning the department will have to close.

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