TOGETHER they have served thousands of patients and expectant mums over the years across our communities.

Now health bosses are set to quiz residents over the next two months about plans to close St Christopher's Hospital and Blackbrook Maternity Home in Fareham.

It is part of a two-month public consultation on a major shake-up of healthcare services across Fareham and Gosport.

The fate of Royal Hospital Haslar also looks set to be sealed, with health bosses insisting they are not ruling the site in or out just yet.

Fareham and Gosport Primary Care Trust's director of strategic development is not quite as enthusiastic about the hospital's future as the 22,000 men and women who signed a petition to save Haslar.

"Haslar is already not the hospital it was," said Inger Hebden who added that alternative sites might have to be found for the hospital's accident treatment centre, physiotherapy and occupational therapy unit.

"We could well use a part of the Haslar site but it would be a small part."

The Ministry of Defence, which owns the buildings and land, is due to withdraw from the site in 2007, leaving Fareham and Gosport PCT with the option of buying part of the site.

Other options under consideration include closing St Christopher's Hospital in Wickham Road and building a new community hospital for the borough elsewhere.

Fareham and Gosport PCT has earmarked a 20-acre section of land it owns on the Coldeast site at Sarisbury Green.

Mrs Hebden said: "The building at St Christopher's needs to be replaced by 2006.

"There are other buildings too, such as the Hill Park physiotherapy unit and Blackbrook Maternity Unit, that need replacing.

"Blackbrook has got to the point where it would not be viable to repair it."

After the series of public meetings, a formal consultation will take place between July and September to discuss more detailed proposals.

Mrs Hebden said: "Our aim is to put together plans for what services will be provided and where they will be in 2007 when we have a new hospital on the Queen Alexandra site and the Ministry of Defence has withdrawn from Haslar."

The next two meetings will be held in Gosport and Portchester.

The first will be at the Gosport Theatre, Thorngate Halls, Bury Road on Friday from 10am until midday.

The second will be at the Byron Room at Portchester Community Centre next Tuesday from 7pm until 9pm.