CUTS ARE NO IMPROVEMENT

IN her recent letter Ann Barnes, Stepping Hill’s chief exec, seriously muddies the waters concerning cuts at the hospital and across health services.

Firstly, she says current cuts at the hospital are unconnected to the strategy for health and social care in the borough. Yet she admits the strategy includes a ‘much reduced’ hospital. The connection between a reduced hospital now and a much more reduced hospital must be obvious to all.

Secondly she asserts that providing more services out of hospital (through Stockport Together) is not costcutting but improving care. So how is cutting outpatient appointments by 50 per cent and GP appointments by 30 per cent an improvement? These cuts are listed in the Stockport Together Business Case.

The business case presents £139 million of spending reductions. Without money, improvements will be fantasy. For example, we are told GPs, district nurses and social care will integrate to keep people out of hospital. Yet we know that GPs and district nurses are already grossly overworked and social care is cut to the bone.

The people of Stockport are being forced into a healthcare experiment with the safety net of good hospital services shredded.

People like Ann Barnes are compelled to enforce these policies but they could at least warn the government and the people of Stockport of the dangers. To claim instead that we are being offered ‘improvement’ is unforgivable.

Terry Tallis