Staff and patients at St John’s Hospital in Livingston may lose the hospital’s shop as the store is set to shut down by the end of July.
Employees at the hospital shop, worried they could lose their jobs, set up a petition to save it.
The store is owned by the group Compass and operates out of a small retail outlet in St John’s.
No tenant has been found for the space if and when Compass terminates their lease at the end of July.
Aris Tyrothoulakis, site director, St John’s Hospital, said: “The current shop tenant has served notice that they are terminating the lease at the end of July 2022.
“We are currently in the process of finding a new tenant to replace the service as soon as possible.
“The shop is one of several areas in the hospital for staff and patients to buy food and drink including the canteen and the café shop, and other retailers that sell a range of products are within walking distance.”
Despite being able to access food from alternative outlets in the hospital, staff and patients will be unable to purchase items like toiletries, magazines, or other miscellaneous goods.
One concerned employee from St John’s said: “The shop might be expensive, but for a lot of patients in the hospital, it’s all they have – you only have to see how many signatures the petition has got so far to know that.
“As a member I use the shop a couple of times a week at least, it’s convenient for me but it’s necessary for patients that don’t have any visitors or outside support.
“Patients can’t leave hospital grounds, and even if they were able to, a lot of them wouldn’t be able to make it to the Scotmid up the road and up a set of stairs.
“As staff we certainly don’t have enough time to get up there.
“I’m friendly with a few of the girls in the shop, there’s a few staff who’ve been there for a number of years now, and you get to know people. I don’t want to see them made redundant.
“All the way through lockdown they never once closed – they ran on reduced hours, but they made the extra effort to always stay open for patients and staff – we need a shop.”
The petition to save the shop is available at both the till in the store and in the Howden Cafe, also in the hospital.
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