Hospital Merger Plans Challenged

36 people turned up at the Sattavis Patidar Centre, Forty Avenue last night to discuss the proposed merger of Ealing and North West London Hospitals Trust (covering Central Middlesex, Northwick Park and St Mark's hospitals). This compared with 100 at the recent Ealing meeting and a 'client' base of 800,000 people.


Professor Rory Shaw, Medical Director, made the case for the merger. The organisational merger would enable the joint Trust to have larger specialist teams which would be more viable than the present small teams, enable shift-work to take place and would attract high calibre staff Economies of scale would mean the Trust could keep pace with developments by buying up to date equipment and make resources, including scanners and operating theatres 'work harder' and the buildings 'earn their keep'. 

He said that Northwick Park's  stroke care unit was a good example of the merits of large, centralised teams and had led to better survival rates and fewer cases of paralysis.


Although the Chair of Brent LINk (Local Involvement Network) had stipulated that the meeting was not to discuss services, Shaw said that the merger was being proposed against the consultation on the commissioning of services that would take place in Summer 2012.  The focus would be on prevention and long-term conditions and more care and treatment in the community. He claimed that the latter was bothe cheaper and more effective.


He said that the move was taking place as a time when there was a general recognition that bigger was better. Other speeches from the six suited males on the platform extolled the merits of 'an army of generic workers', with an implication that these might be volunteers, who could help patients at home with hospital-home transition. We were treated to the management  mantra 'Localise where possible, centralise where necessary'.


Challenged that the presentation had not mentioned the financial plight of the NWLH Trust and that the merger proposal was a cover for cuts, the platform said that there was a financial saving involved of £7m and that this was specified in the Business Plan. Savings would be made in management and through reduction in 'back office' costs. Asked if  'developing the estate' meant selling off prime sites, especially in the light of the apparent running down of the Ealing and Central Middlesex hospitals, they said that sell-offs were not in the Business Plan but 'there may be scope for that in the future'.

Carers criticised the emphasis on volunteers and a speaker from the Sickle Society was concerned about the speed of the changes and poor consultation with users. He said that there had not been sufficient consideration of the needs of people with Sickle Cell and Central Middlesex Hospital's historic role in providing specialist care.

The platform was challenged on the implications of patients having to travel further for treatment and concern that the disadvantaged population of South Brent would be further disadvantaged if Central Middlesex was run down. Health inequalities would increase. A speaker from the floor made a strong demand for a Equality Impact Assessment. Despite repeated requests the platform were un able to advise which bus patients should get from Harlesden to Northwick Park Hospital.

Behind it all was the implication that larger teams would mean each site would have different specialisms which would not be offered at other hospitals in the Trust. The platform argued that routine care would still be provided at each hospital. A question asking if the new arrangements would be able to cope with a 'major incident' in South Brent with its many railways, the North Circular, waste sites and commercial premises; was not answered.


Brent LINk will be putting together its response and you can contribute: brentlink@hestia.org Tel: 020 8965 0309. Brent LINk Unit 56, The Designworks, Park Parade, Harlesden, London, NW10 4HT

Harrow LINk will hold its own consultation:
HARROW LINk: Thursday 12 January 2012. Registration and refreshments from 5.30pm. Event starts at 5.50pm and will close at 8pm. Premier House Banqueting, Canning Road, Harrow, HA3 7TS. Places are limited. If you like to attend please contact Harrow LINk at info@harrowlink.org.uk
or call 020 8863 3355.


TIMETABLE
November 2011 Outline Business Case for merger signed off by NHS London
March/April 2012 Full Business Case approved by the Trust Boards and NHS London
May 2012 Submission for approval by Department of Health Transaction Board
July 2012 Merger takes places
Autumn 2012 Commissioning of Services

Shahrar Ali's report on the meeting is HERE

Different views in Wembley Central today

Rubbish in London Road that Labour councillors and canvassers walked past today

A front garden today, a rare sight amongst the 'car parks with houses attached'

I bumped into about 10 Labour party canvassers in London Road today who had just walked past a prime example (above) of the impact of Brent's waste management cuts. We were all out and about canvassing for the Wembley Central by-election to be held on December 22nd.

Afifa Pervez (Lib Dem) is campaigning on car parking charges and Madhuri Davda (Conservative) is calling for the end of traffic calming measures which deliberately 'slow down traffic', 'unnecessary bus lanes' and narrowing of the main roads. Both ignore the root of the problem which is that we have too many cars on our roads. Front gardens are paved over with two or more cars per household. Pervez claims that local people need their cars to get to work, take their children to school and do their shopping while Davda claims 'as Wembley's population grows, this problem will only get worse'. Of course it will if everyone of an age to drive insists on having their own cars and parents insist on driving their children to school rather than (horrors!) walking, or (even more horrifying!) using a bus.

There is something pretty illogical about assuming unblocked roads would make things easier if the driving population increases - not to mention longer bus journeys when buses lose priority, which would force people back into cars, and increased traffic placing children in danger from speeding vehicles on 'unblocked roads'. Then of course there is the increased air pollution from all those vehicles.

I support 20mph limits in built up areas and increased investment in public transport to get people out of their cars. Good local schools would reduce the need for all those school runs. While we are at it let's have some controls over the paving over of front gardens - our local streets are becoming nothing more than car parks with houses attached.

The Lib Dem's 'Focus' By-election newspaper states 'Wembley campaigner Afifa Pervez is leading the campaign to save Brent libraries'. Well, no. The Brent SOS Library Campaign is a non-party campaign made up of non-affiliated residents and some who are members of Labour, Green, Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties. It is not owned by an political party and Pervez does not lead it.  Davda is also campaigning for the libraries but neither mention the fact that it is Coalition cuts to local government funding that has led to Brent Council's cuts.

Which brings us to Krupa Sheth, the Labour candidate who is in the unenviable position of having to defend Labour's cuts. Abracadabra - she copes with the problem in a twinkling by ignoring what the Labour Council has been doing. Instead she assures us that she 'believes in our local schools' but doesn't tell us that her parents believed in them so much they sent her to the private, fee-paying Swaminarayan School. She goes on to say that she will fight the government's 'unfair' cuts to 'Brent's schools, hospitals, police and more'. Well the Labour Council hasn't made much of a fist of that so far.

I go back to basic position: the Tory and Lib Dem candidates deserve no respect if they do not acknowledge that their Coalition government is responsible for the massive reduction in local government budgets as well as abolition of the Education Maintenance Allowance, cutting of the  Building Schools for the Future programme which affect our children;s education and the potentially devastating consequences early next year of the Housing Benefit cap which will see many of our families made homeless. Standing up for the rights of motorists seems at the very least 'inadequate' in those circumstances.

And Labour has to be honest. They have to admit that they have been forced to do the Coalition's dirty work and that Brent Council cuts are going to hurt people and damage life chances. No more hiding behind euphemisms such as 'transformation' and 'efficiencies'. There appears to be no appetite amongst Labour councillors for a united fight, alongside the community, for justice for the people of Brent but that is what would bring them back some respect.

E-Zone solutions an attack on democracy - Greens

The Green Party has dismissed current solutions to the Euro-zone crisis as short-sighted, economically unsustainable and tantamount to an attack on European democracy.

Current solutions to the sovereign debt crisis all amount to the same thing: the poorest paying the bill.
Two solutions are currently being discussed; first, a €2trillion fund to bail out indebted countries so that they can pay their debts to banks; second, a multi billion euro project to recapitalise the banks so that indebted countries can be allowed to default without bankrupting banks.

The first solution asks European tax payers to underwrite a €2trillion fund. The second asks Europeans tax payers to underwrite banks. Essentially they are the same regressive solution, which hits the poorest hardest and does nothing to resolve a systemic crisis.

The current solution does nothing to prevent future unsustainable debt and subsequent future crisis. Instead, it undermines democracy by putting the survival of banks before the interests of society.

The Green Party has come forward with an ambitious alternative to the neo-liberal, pro-corporate ideology that is governing economic policy in Paris, Berlin and the European Central Bank.

The alternative is twofold. First, banks must pay for themselves. The level of capital reserve must be raised and new ratios of fractional reserve banking need to introduced and enshrined in legislation. In this way, unsustainable sovereign debt will be paid for by the banking creditors who decided to make a profit by taking the risk; not the societies who stand to suffer.

This will mean that the financial sector will need to reduce its asset base which will hit lending to the real economy. To offset this, a massive Green Investment Bank (GIB) must be created to lend to sustainable businesses and industries, where the financial sector fails to do so.

Such a GIB could be funded by the same capital that is being discussed for the €2trillion bailout fund and the recapitalisation of European banks. In addition, the GIB could be funded by a higher banking levy and a financial transaction tax. The difference would be that tax payer's money would not be going into the financial black hole of hedge fund balance sheets. Instead, the money will be used to create real - tax payer owned - assets, in affordable homes, renewable energy and sustainable industry.

The Green Party calls on European governments to dismiss the needs of private financial institutions, provide millions of jobs and give tax payers control over their own economy. You might call it a democratic solution to the Euro-zone crisis.

Greens at Wembley again this weekend

At the Climate Justice March with Jean Lambert Green MEP and Jenny Jones Green AM and Mayoral Candidate

Off canvassing again on Sunny Saturday and Soggy Sunday for the Wembley central By-election.  If you would like to help meet us as 11am outside Wembley Central Station and we'll do some door-knocking and leaflet delivering.

Great Indian veggie food afterwards.

Brent needs a properly resourced Central Middlesex Hospital

Is Central Middlesex being reduced to a 'poly clinic'?

 The possible merger of the Ealing Hospital and North West London Hospitals Trust is being discussed in a series of meetings in Ealing, Brent and Harrow but anxiety about the future of Central Middlesex (commonly known locally as 'Park Royal') Hospital is likely to be a big issue.

A meeting of 100 people at Ealing Town Hall yesterday provoked a lively discussion with many people concerned about the running down of Central Middlesex Hospital as well as the merger itself. Hospital administrators when challenged admitted there had not been consultation over the withdrawal of overnight Accident and Emergency Services at Central Middlesex and said the decision had been made on 'clinical grounds'. They said they hope to reopen the facility soon. They also stated that an NHS bid to run the service had been rejected in favour of one from Care UK.

The gradual running down of a hospital serving a deprived area such as South Brent/Park Royal is causing considerable concern. Health in poorer neighbourhoods is already an issue: there is heavy pollution from the North Circular Road affecting many local children, possibilities of traffic accidents on the North Circular a higher possibility of gun and knife wounds and more  illness associated with alcohol and drug abuse.

Families and individuals lacking cars to transport them to Ealing or Northwick Park would have a difficult journey to the hospitals or may have to resort to calling an ambulance. More and longer ambulance journeys seem a distinct possibility.

 We have to be concerned about whether a reduced Central Middlesex would be able to cope with a .major incident' in the area.

Central Middlesex has a history of being responsive to the needs of the local population and was instrumental in getting sickle cell anaemia recognised as an illness and pioneering treatment.  There are further specific illnesses in our loaclity, such as TB,  which require such an approach.




BBC REPORT

Make your voice count – LINks will be holding events to seek views from its members and the public regarding the proposed merger


LINks across Brent, Ealing and Harrow will be holding events to seek the view of LINks members and the public regarding the proposed merger of Ealing Hospital NHS Trust and The North West London Hospitals NHS Trust. Representatives from the Trusts will give a presentation and be available to answers questions. The events are as follows:

BRENT LINk: Monday 12 December 2011. Registration and light refreshments from 6.30pm. Event starts at 7pm and will close at approximately 9pm. Sattavis Patidar Centre, Forty Avenue at the junction with The Avenue, Wembley Park, Middlesex HA9 9PE. Places are limited. If you would like to attend, please call the Brent LINk Team on 020 8965 0309 or email: brentlink@hestia.org

HARROW LINk: Thursday 12 January 2012. Registration and refreshments from 5.30pm. Event starts at 5.50pm and will close at 8pm. Premier House Banqueting, Canning Road, Harrow, HA3 7TS. Places are limited. If you like to attend please contact Harrow LINk at info@harrowlink.org.uk
or call 020 8863 3355.

Volunteer Saturday School teachers wanted

A Kingsbury Supplementary School is looking for volunteer primary school teachers to help them out on Saturdays.

Teachers are needed for Years 1-3 am and Y4-5 pm to help children with English and Maths.

Contact the Kingsbury Project For Somali Youth at sabaax48@googlemail.com

Willesden Green Library not on December Executive Agenda

The report on the  rebuild of Willesden Green Library, which was rescheduled  for the December 12th Executive has not been tabled. The item was deferred at the last Executive meeting on November 14th.

Anyone know what's going on?

A Brent 'social enterprise' to provide school services?

A little more information is emerging on possible new models for Brent's school improvement and other educational services.

Brent Council will  make a offer in January 2012 for its traded services to schools and is confident it has the resources to provide all the services schools wish to buy in 2012-13.

However from 2013 any remaining funding from the Council will be spent on supporting the core, statutory services that remain with them. This includes overviewing schools performance and intervening in schools experiencing decline or difficulties.

In one model being proposed other services would be provided by a Social  Enterprise Board that is based on 'co-leadership and co-ownership' of school improvement through a partnership between schools and the local authority.  The Board would have 2 headteacher representatives, 2  from the local authority, 2 managers and two external members (commercial and higher education).  There would be 11 'theme' groups covering different services. The Council suggests that such a social enterprise could trade within and beyond Brent on a self-financing basis.

At the same time the LA is exploring links with neighbouring boroughs to see if a jointly owned 'bank' of educational professionals could provide 'high quality, specialist expertise across a wide range of areas'.

The LA intends to go ahead and consult with headteachers on the proposals over the next year.

Although schools already pay for traded services from within their own budgets there are clearly budgetary implications. 'Self-financing' may require a contribution from school budgets which are likely to be under pressure by 2013.  It could be seen as a way of shifting the financial burden of cuts  from the LA to schools. The proposals may well not be sufficiently attractive for some schools that are currently discussing academy conversion and want to move swiftly to take advantage of current financial incentives.

Watch this space.