The NHS and the future of Northern Ireland’s Hospitals
The core principles of the NHS are under attack. The Workers Party has been on the streets defending Nurses’ demands for better pay and opposing private healthcare in Northern Ireland. Here we discuss the background and the current state of play
The NHS and its Underminers
The formation of the NHS just three years after the defeat of fascism in 1945, and the securing of the principle that health care would be free at the point of use and available to every citizen from the cradle to the grave, was amongst the most significant social developments of the 20th century in Britain and Northern Ireland. These changes were not given freely, they were won by the struggles of the organised working class. That is also how they will be protected and developed
Like a lot of socially progressive initiatives that benefited society, working people and their families, the NHS was targeted from birth by right wing conservatives, private medical insurance companies and some professional elites. Though with different motives, they found common purpose in opposing a state-run health service that denied them private profit at the expense of the public’s health.
The open undermining of the NHS has gone on since its inception. It continues today, and the past decade in particular has seen an increased intensity in the offensive with major underfunding, the diminution of services and the demoralisation of staff on one hand, and the relentless promotion and pervasiveness of private health schemes on the other.
The value base on which the NHS was founded, and the type of society envisaged by is founders, speaks as loudly today as it did in the years immediately after the defeat of fascism in 1945.
Working class struggle
For now, and for the future, the priorities are clear. The NHS must be prioritised, strengthened and properly funded. The staff who deliver its services must be supported, developed and paid the wages they deserve. It’s not just the NHS that’s unsafe in private hands – it’s also the elderly, the vulnerable, the ill and all those in need.
The life changing principles gained over seventy-five years ago have transformed our health and wellbeing and have brought significant benefits to the working class. Of course, because we live in a capitalist society health inequalities are a
major problem across many areas of Northern Ireland. They go hand in hand with poverty, multiple deprivations, low-pay, and substandard housing.
Stormont’s Latest Proposals
The Stormont Executive has recently published a consultation document “Hospitals-Creating A Network for Better Outcomes”, outlining its plans for hospitals in Northern Ireland. One of the main ‘solutions’ offered by the Stormont Coalition to deal with the systemic neglect that creates these inequalities is to suggest that patients might have to travel further to access care. This shows a lack of detailed understanding of health inequalities and related causes. The Workers Party is opposed to proposals which suggest additional payments to medical and senior managers when consultants already receive merit payments and senior managers receive performance related pay. While recognising the importance of adequate remuneration and career progression, the only ‘vested interest’ in the NHS should be the patients.
We are also deeply concerned about proposals in another Executive document, “The Health and Social Care NI - Three Year Plan” which outlines plans for huge efficiency savings totalling £400 million, with anticipated savings coming through charging for prescription and home care services.
We note, in particular, that the Three-Year Plan expects private sector outsourcing to relieve pressure on breast cancer services, while more generally, the independent sector is described as being one of the “key partners” in the planning and delivery of social care and mental health services.
The Future Struggle
In the coming period we need to be prepared to develop and defend the life affirming, socially cohesive principles of the NHS like never before. The Workers Party has been on the streets doing exactly that, defending Nurses’ demands for better pay and opposing the continuing intrusion of private healthcare businesses into Northern Ireland. In this spirit, the Workers Party has submitted its response to “Hospitals -Creating A Network for Better Outcomes”. Our response can be read here.