12 HOUR VIGIL on 20th September 2008. Over 400 signatures collected.

12 HOUR VIGIL on 20th September 2008. Over 400 signatures collected.
photo copyright News Shopper.

Thursday 27 November 2008

Dare we hope??????

All credit to the thousands of local residents who, over the course of 2008, have protested one way or another against the planned closures at Queen Mary's Hospital. Their protests have not been in vain.

The Health Secretary, Alan Johnson, has written to me saying that he will pass any referral that he receives from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee to the Independent Reconfiguration Panel, something he doesn't have to do. This is excellent news as the future of Queen Mary's will now be in the hands of experts who have no political remit and who are not personally involved in the proposed reconfiguration and loss of services.

Coupled with the fact that the Chief Executive of Queen Mary's has announced her resignation to be replaced, possibly, by someone who puts the local residents first and not our discredited politicians, can we dare to hope that Queen Mary's can be saved as a fully-admitting hospital?