History
The hospital’s story began over a hundred years ago when Dr John McIntyre left a bequest of £1,000 in his will “….to the Parish of Odiham to provide or to support a so called Village Hospital….”. Dr McIntyre had been a GP in charge of the Odiham practice before his retirement and was used to the problems arising when patients were sent to hospital some distance from home.
Seven years passed from Dr McIntyre’s death to the hospital’s opening in the autumn of 1910; time which was spent finalising building plans, and determining the ongoing running of the hospital.
The cost of treating early patients had to be covered; many patients were subscribers, or recommended by subscribers, or a contribution was requested based on the patients’ ability to pay. Patients unable to pay for hospital treatment were sent to Winchfield workhouse infirmary or nursed at home.
The two local GPs frequently performed operations administering anaesthetics themselves, and long recovery periods would be spent in a bed in one of the two wards.
Fundraisng continued to provide essential support to the hospital and an annual Pound Day yielded gifts of produce to supplement the kitchen store cupboard.
The National Health Service
By the time the National Health Service was inaugurated in 1948, many hospitals were facing financial difficulties due to the rising cost of medical care and Odiham was no exception. But the hospital’s role within the community did not change greatly and it continued to serve local people.
In 1968 Dr Harward, the senior partner of the GP practice was largely responsible for saving the hospital from closure as part of a financial economy by the health authority. Thereafter, with advances in medical technology, operations were no longer performed as Basingstoke hospital provided modern facilities including X ray capability.
In 1978 another threat of closure, this time due to staff shortages, particularly a cook, was averted. With the hospital safe once more, the Health Authority approached the League of Friends for help in financing a new Outpatient block, which was used by visiting consultants from Basingstoke hospital. Shortly thereafter the hospital was extended from 8 to 13 beds and again this was largely financed by the community in return for the Health Authority’s commitment to the hospital.
Return to Community Ownership
At the first meeting of the newly formed North and Mid Hampshire Health Authority in April 1996 a proposal was put forward to close Odiham to help compensate for the extra financial burden following the closure of the Cambridge Military Hospital in Aldershot.
The doctors of the local practices, representing a population of over 22,000 immediately formed an action group and following a public meeting in May an Action Committee chaired by Mr John Stancliffe was established. After 21 months of negotiation and thanks to the overwhelming support of the community, their elected representatives and the Community Health Council, the Health Authority finally withdrew the closure proposal in favour of a plan to save the hospital. There followed a frantic 5 month period in which the community raised the sum of £245,000 – the purchase price of the hospital – and on 30th June 1998, after exactly 50 years of NHS management, the hospital returned to community ownership.
With grateful thanks to Mrs Daphne Reggler, whose book “The Story of Odiham Cottage Hospital”, is available from the hospital (Tel: 01256 393603)