During the Secretary of State for Health’s Commons Statement on major incidents being declared at a number of hospitals, Lilian highlighted the impact of the Government’s deep cuts to social care and how they are undermining the efforts of dedicated NHS and social care staff.
Addressing the Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, Lilian said:
“Yesterday the emergency department at Nottingham’s Queen’s Medical Centre faced such intense pressure that the trust was forced to enact its internal incident plan and cancel planned operations and out-patient clinics. Higher than expected admissions and delays in discharging patients who are well enough to leave hospital have been creating problems for many months. How can we resolve what is now a crisis if the Secretary of State will not even acknowledge that his Government’s deep cuts to social care are undermining the efforts of our dedicated NHS and social care staff?”
Speaking after the debate Lilian said:
“Labour has repeatedly warned David Cameron to get a grip on the growing crisis in A&E and ambulance services. He has failed to do so and has now patients here in Nottingham face unacceptable waits, postponed operations and cancelled outpatient appointments.
The Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, still won’t acknowledge that his Government’s deep cuts to social care, his wasteful reorganisation of the NHS and the scrapping of guaranteed GP appointments within 48 hours go to the heart of this crisis.
I’m proud of the NHS in Nottingham and I’ve met many of the caring and dedicated staff who are currently facing unbelievable pressure. Patients and health workers in our city deserve so much better. Labour will rescue the NHS with a fully-funded £2.5 billion a year Time to Care fund -; employing 20,000 more nurses, 8,000 more GPs, 5,000 new home care workers and 3,000 more midwives, giving our hospitals the staff they need to care for patients safely and transforming community services to help people stay healthy outside hospital”.