The public are to have their say on controversial plans to shake-up vascular surgery in Hampshire.

Health bosses are looking at several new options as part of the major revamp of the service which aims to create more specialist teams to help save the lives of more patients suffering from blood vessel disorders.

As reported in the Daily Echo, one proposal already considered is for Southampton General Hospital to become a specialist unit with all emergency and elective surgery from Portsmouth and the south-east to move there.

If this was given the go-ahead teams at Southampton and Portsmouth would form one team, including eight or nine consultants performing emergency and complex surgery – which is 30 per cent of a vascular surgeon’s workload – in Southampton.

However the plan proved particularly unpopular in Portsmouth, with many fearing it would put lives at risk, so health chiefs have drawn up alternative options.

These include Southampton General Hospital and the Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth to share vascular services across both sites.

A third option is for Southampton, Portsmouth and Brighton to become three “stand-alone” vascular centres, with each providing emergency services.

After seeing the new options up for discussion, the Hampshire health overview and scrutiny committee approved plans for them to go out to public consultation in January.