Hospital seeks advice on future

Two-star status means the hospital is performing well overall

Staff at Musgrove Park in Taunton have written to almost 3,500 members of the hospital's foundation network to seek their views about the future.

The network was set up in 2004 when hospital bosses were considering applying to become a foundation trust.

Chairman Brian Tanner said "We greatly value our network members and want to hear what they think about the services the hospital provides.

"We are sending them all a newsletter about developments at the hospital."

Performing well

He added: "It has a series of questions that will help us to better understand the public views on choice and standards in the NHS."

In July the Taunton and Somerset NHS Trust received two stars in the annual NHS performance ratings.

The two-star status means the hospital is performing well overall.

Taunton and Somerset NHS Trust, with an annual budget of £135m, serves a population of 340,000, mostly living in the area served by Dorset and Somerset Strategic Health Authority.

The trust slipped from three stars in 2003 to two in 2004.