KEEP THE HORTON GENERAL
Our hospital provides vital services to Banbury's growing population.
We're about to lose those services.
So what are we doing about it?
Behind the scenes……
Outwardly, the campaign went quiet for a few months while the decision
makers retreated behind closed doors to review the proposals. Here’s
what went on.
• After the consultation ended, the ORH Trust set up two working
parties – one for paediatrics (children’s services) and
one for obstetrics (maternity services).
• The working groups were asked to review obstetric and paediatric services at the Horton in detail, and make recommendations to the Trust.
• The Trust also set up a Stakeholder Panel, including (amongst others) representatives from the Keep the Horton General Campaign, Cherwell District Council, Banbury Town Council, and the Oxfordshire Primary Care Trust.
• The stakeholder panel’s job is to comment on the working groups’ recommendations, and make their own suggestions. However, it is the ORH Trust who will make the final decision.
• The working groups reviewed the evidence and prepared their draft reports, which they presented to the stakeholder panel.
You
can read them here:
Working group statement
Maternity and gynaecology working group
report
Childrens working group report
• The stakeholder group debated the new proposals and crafted a comprensive response (read the stakeholders response here).
• The Trust reviewed the working groups’ recommendations and the stakeholders response, and decided to press on with the cuts.
• The Oxfordshire Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee decided this was unacceptable and referred the proposals to the Secretary of State for Health.
• The Health Secretary referred the proposals to the Independent Reconfiguration Panel.
• The IRP are reviewing the proposals in detail, visiting Banbury and talking to stakeholders and the general public.
It is vital that you write to them and let them know how much we need the hospital.
Please
see "previous events" for our
other activities and achievements.
_______________________________________________________________
The original proposals
Our formal response to the consultation
Read
our response - click here
You will not be surprised to learn that we believe the proposals will
have a significant detrimental effect on the services provided to the
people of North Oxfordshire and surrounding areas. We reject the Trust’s
proposals in their current form, but would welcome the chance to work
with them openly and honestly to find a solution that provides a safe,
sustainable service for the people of the Banbury area.
PUSH
(People United Saving Hospitals)
We've
joined forces with other groups across England to start campaigning on a bigger
scale. PUSH aims to bring together local groups like ours, to co-ordinate
the national effort.
Mayors
and civic leaders conference
We're inviting
all the mayors and civic leaders in Oxfordshire, South Warwickshire and
South Northants to a conference in Banbury to discuss the cuts and put
pressure on the Trust. When the leaders of half a million people speak
out, can they fail to listen?
We're obtaining
information - and using it
We're using the Freedom of Information of Act to obtain various
reports that certain organisations would prefer we didn't see. We're using
this information to challenge the proposed cuts on many fronts.
Links:
Horton victory - everything about our successful campaign
We're on
committees that matter
Some
of our members sit on the Oxfordshire Public & Patient Forum. The Oxfordshire
Public & Patient Forum can question ORH Trust representatives on behalf
of patients.
Another member was obliged to resign from our group to take up a place on
the Oxfordshire County Council Health Scrutiny Committee. The Oxfordshire
County Council Health Scrutiny Committee can summon and question ORH Trust
representatives and can report to government health minister Patricia Hewitt.
Both committees provide us with a vital "voice" to reach the right
ears.
We've
written to over 100 parish councils, to local businesses, churches, mosques
and organisations
....asking
them to get involved in the campaign. We have received a huge pledge of
support in response.
We've
written to the national media
.....asking
them to publicise the fact that unsafe cuts are being imposed on hospitals
right across the country
Keep
Our NHS Public Campaign
We
also have strong links with the Keep Our NHS Public campaign, which spreads
the message that the current problems in the NHS are the result of government
meddling in NHS policy.
The Keep Our NHS Public campaign;
- opposes the
cuts that are taking place all across the country
- opposes the market system, which sees all items of care costed and billed,
massively increasing administrative costs;
- wants to bring attention to the frequent, costly NHS reorganisations
that have seen millions wasted over the last decade, but which have returned
us to more or less the same position we were in in the early 1990's;
- opposes the use of the private sector in health care (PFI), in which
care is provided by independent profit-making treatment centres like the
ineffective, expensive Capio Orthapaedic Centre in Banbury.
"Double the money going in, but less service coming out"
If you are interested in the national campaign, their website is www.keepournhspublic.com
Lobbying parliament
All the Oxfordshire
MPs are lobbying parliament for fair funding for Oxfordshire. Oxfordshire
receives the lowest funding per head of population in the country.
If our funding was increased by even half of the shortfall (compared to
the national average) there would be no need for the cuts. Tony Baldry's
petition has been submitted to parliament now, but you can still check
out his website, www.save-our-services.com
