McCarthy expresses anger at underfunded NHS

Fiona McCarthy, Workers Party Rep for Oldpark and Cliftonville. has reacted with anger and concern at the calls for people to be mindful of attending hospital Emergency Departments due to the winter weather and pressures. Every day is a pressure day within the Hospital system says Fiona, who works in a hospital. Our Health and Social care services have been in crisis for a number of years due to bed closures, ward closures, privatisation and fragmentation of Domiciliary care and residential care.

Fiona continued instead of allocating the necessary funding that would help alleviate the situation the Minister has published a three year Strategic Plan that has built in efficiency savings over the next three years of hundreds of millions of pounds. It is impossible to fix the service whilst removing that amount of savings, Fiona says seriously ill people are being treated on trollies, chairs and beds in corridors.

People turn up at hospitals because they can’t get access to their GPs or are being sent there by GPs. Fiona also commented that because of the winter fuel payments being stopped that more elderly people will present at hospitals with infections and respiratory problems they need to be looked after. This situation did not happen by accident it happened by design because of decisions previously taken. 

Fiona concluded the situation is going to get worse as the Minister has aspirations to consult on introducing prescription charges and homecare charges. So much for a Health Service free at the point of entry.