Helen meets minister to discuss state of NHS in Shropshire
Helen Morgan has taken her concerns over local health provision to a Government Minster following the publication of NHS league tables this week.
Helen Morgan, MP for North Shropshire and Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Health and Social Care, met with Health Minister, Karin Smyth MP at Westminster on Wednesday (10th September).
The meeting came the day after league tables were published for the first time, ranking NHS hospital trusts across England.
Shropshire hospitals saw vastly different results, with the Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital placed 27th out of 134 trusts while the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH), which manages Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, was placed in category four, the lowest, and came in at 113th overall for acute trusts.
The wide-ranging discussion between the MP and the Minister included a conversation around A&E wait times at SaTH, now the second worst in the country for those having to wait four hours or more.
North Shropshire MP, Helen Morgan, said: “It was a productive meeting with the Minister and I’m grateful for her time. Some health services in Shropshire have been in the spotlight for the wrong reasons for too long, so it was good to discuss recent improvements and what more needs to be done.
“When it comes to SaTH, it’s recognised that there have been green shoots of positive progress, especially around scan wait times, but it’s also clear that there’s a long way to go.
“On top of performance improvements locally, the Government needs to grip the issues in Adult Social Care, so that we can fix the current crisis and relieve unnecessary pressure on our hospitals.”
The introduction of a new ‘Neighbourhood Health Service’ was also discussed at the meeting, following the scheme’s launch announced by the Government yesterday.
Across the country, several trial areas have been identified, intended to open up access to care closer to resident’s homes. If successful, the scheme would be rolled out nationwide.