Recent stalls have been very busy and we're set to run another with a new leaflet (Ta Jim & Patrick)
SOH Stall Sat 30th Jan 2 - 4pm Lyric Square King St - join us if you can.
H&F Council Public Meeting on Mansfield Report
The new leaflet (attached) advertises this upcoming meeting called by the council and supported by SOH designed to inform & listen to local peoples' views about Michael Mansfield QC's findings and his call to stop the cuts & closure plan known as Shaping a Healthier Future. In the meantime council leader Stephen Cowan has, with 4 neighbouring boroughs, written to Jeremy Hunt urging crisis talks.
H&F Council Public Meeting on Mansfield Report Tues 23rd Feb 7 for 7.30 Hamm Town Hall
GP Practices receive more money not to refer
Do you remember the news that H&F Clinical Commissioning Group are paying financial incentives to some Gps not to refer people to hospital? Jim challenged them at the last CCG meeting and got lots of flannel. Since then we've found that this spending has almost doubled in the last year to £87,178. To quote GP leader Dr Maureen Baker " it undermines the doctor-patient relationship and the trust that underpins it."
H&F NHS losing 10%
GP incentives seems a peculiar spending priority given the CCG's worsening finances. Andy reports on a recent meeting with H&F CCG leaders in which he was told that our local NHS will be losing more than 10% of the budget over the next three years (about £25 million). He says "H&F is one of only six areas in the country to lose out in this way – so much for beefing up community to make up for the closure of acute services."
Neighbourhood Health Forums
There's a chance to feedback your experiences about this or other local health services (the good as well as the rarer not so good) at the series of Neighbourhood Health Forums set up by the council to improve local care.
Thurs 4th Feb 7 - 9pm St Matthew’s Church, Wandsworth Bridge Road, SW6 2TZ (for Fulham South)
Will the Mayor back Mansfield?
It will be an enormous boost to the campaigners against SAHF if the new London mayor demands a halt to the SAHF closure plan - in particular to keep Charing Cross as an acute hospital. Some of us have suggested questions and got tickets for a mayoral hustings organised by the Evening Standard in Kensington. It's too late to apply for tickets but we plan to give SOH leaflets to audience and candidates as they file in. (We're not party political, we will be asking people to vote for any candidate who supports the local NHS).
Leaflet the Hustings Wed 3rd Feb 5.30 - 6.30pm Royal Geographic Society Exhibition Rd
Ealing Save Our NHS
Over in Ealing local people are also battling for their acute services - facing a SAHF plan to close the childrens' unit at Ealing hospital this summer as part of a run-down strategy. Consultant paediatrician Tony O'Sullivan, local GP Dr Ajai Sandhu and Dr John Lister of London Health Emergency are putting the case against the closure plan and suggesting how campaigners can most effectively block it.
Ealing Save Our NHS Public Meeting Tues 2nd Feb 7.30pm Ealing Town Hall W5 2BY
Report from Imperial NHS Trust Board Meeting
Worsening finances (and vacancies, A&E waits, staff sickness and turnover) were major themes from the board meeting. At the same time it's important to acknowledge the excellent health outcomes delivered by Imperial's front line staff. Attached is a copy of the board papers with most relevant info highlighted. Interestingly we gave away all our copies of the Mansfield Report to board directors so there's obviously an appetite amongst some for an alternative to the current hospital closure plans.
A&E Staffing Problems Suppressed
Hopefully the board will also read this shelved report from the government's own advisory clinical panel which highlighted the problem of staff shortages and issued guidance on minimum staffing levels (a critical problem for St Mary's and Charing Cross Hospitals). Against a backdrop of a 35% increase in A&E attendances in England since 2003 Dr Mann, President of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine called for the guidance to be published and considered. Click here to read more.
Regards,
Anne Drinkell (SOH secretary)
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