Put our kids first and politics second
Mum in plea over ward closure
A leading children’s ward campaigner has called on all sides to put politics aside for the good of the cause.
Frustrated Karen Meikle, 30, says that if Paisley’s sick kids’ ward is to remain open, then everyone has to come together with the same message.
Karen was a founding member of the Kids Need Our Kids Ward group back in 2011, when ward 15 at the Royal Alexandra Hospital was first threatened with closure.
But now she is concerned that politics is getting in the way of the key message of keeping the facility open.
She said: “The campaign should be about the kids, not about politics. All the political back and forth, SNP versus Labour takes away from the message we are trying to get out.
“The campaign has always been non political, it doesn’t matter if you are SNP, Labour whatever. So long as you support the ward and the kids who use it.”
Karen, from Shortroods, recently joined a delegation of parents at a meeting with Scottish health secretary Shona Robison in Paisley to explain their concerns about the pro transfer of paediatric inpatient services to the new Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow. Ms Robison has the final decision on the ward’s future after NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board recommend its closure.
Karen’s son Alex, eight, has a severe form of cerebral palsy and is a weekly attender at the ward. Her other lad, 10-year-old Josh, is also, sadly, no stranger to the facility.
Karen added: “We have been running this campaign for a long time. It’s not about politics, it’s about making sure the kids still have the services they need, where they need them. I’d just ask everyone to support us and forget about the other stuff.”
The campaign is gathering pace, with more than 15,000 signing a petition to support the campaign to keep the ward open.
And Karen explains that they are just getting started.
“We are looking to get local businesses involved, lots of businesses and organisations are taking petitions and leaflets in.
“We are approaching well known people from the town to support us, like Gerard Butler and Paolo Nutini and David Tennant. We are trying to get the positivity back into the campaign because at the moment its too much about the political back and forth.”
To sign the petition, https:// home. 38degrees. org. uk/2017/03/24/kids-need-wardsave-ward-15/