‘Let them know what you think’

‘Let them know what you think’

30 November 2016

HEALTH campaigners are urging people across the district to make their views known on the future of local hospital services following the recent publication of two major reports.

The Bengoa report outlines how services should be redesigned to make them fit for the 21st century, while Stormont Health Minister, Michelle O’Neill, has outlined her vision of health and social care across the Province over the next 10 years.

While the the Bengoa report does not make specific recommendations in respect of individual hospitals, it provides comments and observations and suggests ground rules on future hospital provision. It does not recommend the closure of any hospital.

Ms O’Neill said instead of thinking about buildings and hospitals as the only place to deliver services, “we will deliver care and support in the most appropriate setting, ideally in people’s homes and communities.” She said in most instances, people should only have to go to hospital when they need treatment that can’t be provided in their community.

Formal consultation on the reconfiguration of health and social care services across the Province was launched last week and closes on January 17, and the Down Community Health Committee is urging people to make their views known.

Committee chairman, Eamonn McGrady, said at the sod cutting ceremony for the new Downe Hospital in 2006, Northern Ireland’s chief medical officer, Dr Michael McBride, said it would have a 24-hour consultant-led A&E service, coronary 

care and psychiatric services alongside comprehensive diagnostic services and wide range of out-patient services with the emphasis on making the health system respond to the patient, rather than the patient to the system.

“This really is our mission statement,” declared Mr McGrady. “One of the most important aspects of the documents which have been published recently is the reconfiguration of health and social care services which is about what services we get and where we get them.

“The criteria that will be used to assess how the delivery of services should be reconfigured has been published and will effectively determine what services end up in our hospital and all the other hospitals, so it’s important everyone responds to this consultation.”

Mr McGrady said campaigners will be looking to every politician, every political party, Newry, Mourne and Down Council and all sporting, cultural and community groups across South and East Down to respond to the consultation to make their voices heard about the importance of local services. He said local people are also being encouraged to write to the Department of Health to outline the services they want delivered locally as part of the consultation process.

Mr McGrady said a series of public meetings are planned as part of the consultation process and while the venues have not yet been confirmed, he hopes Downpatrick will be one of the chosen locations and has no doubt the local community “will make its presence felt at the event.”

He said while the Health Minister has made it clear she does not envisage there will be any hospital closures — but that facilities will be offering and providing different services — the consultation document makes reference to comments by Sir Liam Donaldson in a report which prompted the Department of Health to appoint Professor Bengoa and his team.

Mr McGrady said Sir Liam said a proportion of poor quality, unsafe care occurs because local hospital facilities in some parts of Northern Ireland cannot provide the level and standards of care required to meet patients’ needs 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Sir Liam said proposals to close local hospitals tend to be met with public outrage, suggesting this would be “turned on its head” if it were properly explained that people were trading a “degree of geographical inconvenience against life or death” and that finding a solution would be above political safe interest.

Mr McGrady said he found it “extraordinary” that the comments were included at the front of such an important document given the Department of Health through its minister has said there will be no hospital closures, but a reconfiguration of services.

“I would argue that a proportion of patients in this country and their families get unsatisfactory care because there are not enough local hospital services,” the campaign group’s chairman added.