Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
Finally: a chance to take on ‘radical’ plans for K&C
Hospital campaigners hope to finally get answers about the future of the Kent and Canterbury at a public meeting tomorrow (Friday) night.
It has been called by the group Chek (Concern for Health in East Kent), which says it has the backing of newly-elected Canterbury and Whitstable MP Rosie Duffield.
At the last public meeting on April 28, people left frustrated after hospital bosses said they were prevented from speaking by civil service rules – known as purdah – due to the pending general election.
But this time chief executive of the hospitals’ trust, Matthew Kershaw will be joined at the Canterbury Academy in Knight Avenue at 7pm by medical director Paul Stevens to detail the issues facing services across east Kent.
The trust is working on a ‘radi- cal’ Sustainability and Transformation Plan, in which all hospital specialities will be located at one site – widely suspected to be the William Harvey at Ashford.
Although plans have yet to be released, it is expected the K&C will have a downgraded role.
Its urgent care services, including heart and stroke, have already been transferred over concerns about the inadequate supervision of junior doctors at the site – a measure the hospitals’ trust claims is “temporary”.
Chairman of Chek Ken Rogers said: “We are still waiting for answers about the ‘appalling state’ of acute hospital services. “
Chek said it hoped Duffield and Faversham and Mid Kent MP Helen Whately – also attending – will press for local health services be returned to the K&C, and get behind their vision of a new hospital with acute metal health beds, social care, and a new medical school built alongside.
“Hopefully, we will see the end to the enormous amount of money being wasted,” said Mr Rogers.