A hospital which has been suffering a staffing crisis among surgeons has confirmed it will no longer carry out emergency and complex surgery.

The move by the Vale of Leven Hospital in Alexandria, West Dunbartonshire, follows the resignation of two surgeons.

At a highly-charged meeting two weeks ago, 42 GPs and consultants warned that the hospital could close if it lost any more key staff.

On Tuesday, Argyll and Clyde Acute NHS Trust said it was fully committed to bringing the number of surgeons at the hospital - which serves 80,000 people over a wide area from Loch Lomond to Oban - back up to four.

A small number of more complex procedures will need to be carried out somewhere else

David Sillito Trust chief executive

However, it said that the need to improve standards and reduce doctors working hours meant that specialist services had to be centralised.

The trust's chief executive David Sillito said: "These pressures mean that the service will need to adapt.

"A small number of more complex procedures will need to be carried out somewhere else.

"It will soon no longer be viable to have emergency surgery carried out at the hospital."

Bruce Barnett, hospital manager at the Vale of Leven, said that he would be working with clinicians and staff to decide which services will continue to be delivered from the hospital.

Maternity unit

He also said that new services could be transferred to the hospital to allow other procedures to be removed.

He added that there was no need to pessimistic about the future of the hospital.

He said: "There is major work in progress preparing for the installation of the CT scanner that will be operational in the spring of 2003.

"A new renal dialysis unit is also planned for the hospital and this is likely to come into being next summer."

The maternity unit at the hospital has been closed since October because of staff shortages and other key consultant posts remain unfilled.