MATRONS at Taunton's Musgrove Park Hospital have hit out at claims of redundancies in their department saying they are damaging morale.

The move has come after the County Gazette was contacted by a member of the public, who the County Gazette has agreed not to name, who said a meeting was held last Thursday where assistant director of nursing Caroline Moore told the matron group half their posts were to go.

The person said: "These senior nurses will hopefully be redeployed to junior posts.

"But there will not be enough of these junior posts so some matrons will be made redundant.

"There is likely to be a huge loss of clinical skill and knowledge."

The person added the role of these staff will change towards management rather than direct patient care.

But the hospital, and the matron group have insisted the accusations are untrue.

The trust is trying to save £6.5million this year, but that does not include cutting the matrons department by half A spokesman for the hospital said: "The details we have been given are wholly and completely inaccurate.

The matron group said: "We wish to express out disappointment that someone has contacted the newspaper giving inaccurate information about the situation here.

"Inaccurate and unofficial briefing of the local press on this issue has damaged our morale far more than the difficult chanced we are having to manage.

"Part of our role as matrons has always been to speak out and promote the highest standards of patient care."

However, the matron said they knew as part of the £6.5million savings all posts were being looked at to see where efficiencies could be made.