Below is the copy of the statement read out at the recent Unison AGM. I have permission to put it on here. Branch Secretary Statement Calderdale & Huddersfield Health & Social Care Strategic Review On 26th February 2014 the outline proposals for the Calderdale & Huddersfield Health & Social Care Strategic Review where presented to the Health & Wellbeing boards in both Kirklees and Calderdale. The strategic Review primarily looked at four care streams: • Children • Long term care • Planned care • Unplanned care Seven organisations have worked together on the strategic review over the past two years including CHFT, SWYPFT & Locala supported by Greater Huddersfield CCG & Calderdale CCG, they highlighted that transformation is needed to address the significant challenges facing the health & social care system now and in the years ahead. The challenges that were highlighted included an aging population with increasing needs, greater prevalence of long term and lifestyle related health and social care problems, patient aspirations and increased pressure on limited and diminishing resources. The case outline states that ‘the changes proposed will improve the safety and quality of services for people and respond to the challenge of increased demand and reducing resources’. The review highlighted the options available and they are as follows: Topic 1 Continue with the existing hospital and community service model and configuration. Topic 2 Implement the community and hospital service model proposed in the strategic outline case, with Huddersfield Royal Infirmary as the site for acute and emergency care and Calderdale Royal Hospital as the site for planned hospital care. Topic 3 Implement the community and hospital service model proposed in the strategic outline case, with Calderdale Royal Hospital as the site for acute and emergency care and Huddersfield Royal Infirmary as the site for planned hospital care. Topic 4 Continue with the existing community service model and change emergency hospital care provided locally so that those people needing specialist treatments are transferred to a major emergency centre outside the local area. Huddersfield Royal Infirmary and Calderdale Royal Hospital would offer ‘see and initiate treatment’ services with people needing specialist treatments transferred to specialist centres. This would reduce demand at the local emergency centres in Halifax and Huddersfield. Topic 5 Other topics which may emerge from the planned engagement activity with staff, public, patients, carers and their representatives. When questioned by council over the preferred option, the providers which included South West Yorkshire Partnership Foundation Trust, Calderdale & Huddersfield Foundation Trust and Locala CIC have indicated that their preferred option is Topic 2, which will involve Huddersfield Royal Infirmary as the site for acute and emergency care and Calderdale Royal Hospital as the site for planned hospital care. This Branch believes these proposals raise fundamental concerns regarding patient safety and services. Changes on such a large scale could potentially have a profound effect on the status of our members continued employment. The majority of our members and their families are also service users of the same trust. We are therefore working with local campaign groups, activists and elected representatives to ensure that the voice of our members and the wider public is considered in any decision making. Calderdale & Huddersfield UNSION Health Branch is calling for the details behind the proposals to be made public as soon as possible so that our members and the community are able to make an informed decision on the future of their services, we are further requesting guarantees from the CCG’s that the infrastructure is in place in the community setting to enable the providers preferred option to be implemented. What raises further concern is a statement that was made to council that there is an assumption that there is an identified potential net efficiency saving of £50 million and this branch is extremely cautious that the driver for these changes are in fact cost cutting instead of what is in the best interests of the service users, and we have not been given assurances to the contrary. The Health & Social Care Bill allows providers to reduce levels of service provision and entitlement to NHS-funded care and there are no restrictions on charging for non-NHS care. The autonomy clause’’ in the Bill gives CCGs and providers extraordinary freedom. We have already seen some CCGs refuse operations for obese patients, despite national guidelines stating their obesity should not preclude them. The Bill also increased the cap placed on hospitals regarding the amount of income they can generate from privately paying patients. Now, up to 49 per cent of income can be generated from private income. This means that almost half the beds currently used for NHS care could be given over to private patients and with the loss of the services at either Calderdale & Huddersfield there would be a real terms reduction in the number of NHS beds required. This could create a two-tier system in hospitals and drain resources, as well as create a conflict of interest, with hospitals having a clear incentive to encourage as many patients as possible to use the private half of their facilities. Moreover, hospitals can decide when to discharge patients. The requirement for coordinated discharge and aftercare of patients between health and social care was abolished in the Bill. The Government has tried to silence critics of the Bill by claiming they are distorting or misrepresenting the legislation. But the points I’ve raised are in the detail of the Bill, there in black and white, for all to see. Whatever your political leanings, health status or experiences of the NHS, it is YOUR health service and I believe you have the right to be informed about what the proposals set out will mean for the NHS. I think most people simply want a health care system that is there for them when they need it, that provides good, efficient service and that treats them with dignity and respect. They want a fair, just system that looks after everyone, regardless of their ability to pay or the complexity of their needs and this is severely compromised by these proposals. We believe that central government deficit reduction is the driver behind the A&E Closures despite David Cameron’s statement in 2010 as part of the conservatives election manifesto, I will remind you of the three promises that he made: • David Cameron promised: We will guarantee that health spending increases in real terms, in each year of the Parliament • David Cameron promised: We will stop the top-down re-organisations of the NHS that have got in the way of patient care • David Cameron promised: I will protect frontline services Is our A&E at both Calderdale Royal of Huddersfield Royal not ‘Frontline’? To ensure that our members and the local community can have their voices clearly heard we are working in Partnership with Linda Riordan M.P and organising a public meeting in Halifax & Huddersfield details of which will be published on our campaign website: unison-yorks.org.uk/# and the first of these meetings takes place on Saturday 29th March, 12:30pm at North Bridge Leisure Centre and this branch encourages our members and your families to attend this event and defend our NHS. This UNISON branch will continue to defend the NHS, the vital services it provides and the dedicated staff that work in it but we can only do this with our members and the wider community standing side by side, now is not the time for divisive politics it’s a time for this branch to go back to its organising roots and I remind you of a statement made by Nye Bevan (then secretary of state for Health) in 1948 ‘The NHS will last as long as there are folk left with the faith to fight for it’. Your branch committee and this union have the faith to fight for our NHS and I look forward to working with you in the months and years ahead to defend this vital national institution. I welcome your views:
Posted on: Mon, 31 Mar 2014 16:48:52 +0000
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