Derek Conway MP must go....now?

It comes as no surprise that despite 91%* of Old Bexley & Sidcup constituents saying that he should "go now", at the time of writing it appears that Derek Conway MP is going to attempt to hang onto his job until the general election, which could be over 2 years away, with his salary, expenses and extremely generous pension remaining intact. Let's get one thing clear - this guy has misappropriated YOUR money. Why should he be allowed to remain as an MP, whether as a Conservative or not?

The problem that the Conservatives are going to have come the general election, should Derek Conway hang on, is that the voters of Old Bexley & Sidcup are going to see that a vote for CONSERVATIVE X is an endorsement of a party that accepts the shenanigans of its previous MP. I will take on whoever stands as the Conservative candidate in Old Bexley and Sidcup, even if I do have to wait until the general election. I would love to say "bring it on" now and let's have a by-election...but, although I can understand people thinking that "if he says he wants x he actually wants y", my job would become easier by the day, week and month, taking on a failed politician, so that at the last, when the general election is called, the voters will say, "good riddance to bad meat" and vote anything but CONSERVATIVE X. So, if he's not going to do the moral thing and go now, then that suits me just fine.

*'Phone poll, 4.2.08, by Independents to save Queen Mary's Hospital, of 137 voters who expressed an opinion

Derek Conway MP faces challenge from Independents to Save Queen Mary's Hospital

Independents to Save Queen Mary's Hospital, the party set up last October to fight to prevent any reduction in and closing of services at Queen Mary's Hospital, Sidcup which is in Derek Conway's constituency, today announced that its party leader, John Hemming-Clark, will stand in the Old Bexley & Sidcup Constituency at the next General Election.

Commenting on this announcement, John said,

"Having stood in the by-election in 2006 in the neighbouring Constituency of Bromley & Chislehurst, I know only too well how the electorate is completely fed up with MPs putting themselves before their constituents. (The Conservatives nearly lost this seat which was previously thought of as very safe).

Derek Conway should be spending his time fighting for our local Queen Mary's Hospital to retain its services, including Accident & Emergency which is under serious threat of closure. However, we find he is more interested in getting his family onto the Westminster gravy train than campaigning locally.

Independents to Save Queen Mary's Hospital's aims include rebuilding first-rate services for local people, including the local health provision and we, and not Derek Conway, are the only party to fight for local people to acheive these aims."

Short Trip to A & E was a life-saver

Dear Mr Hemming-Clark

Please continue to do all that you can to keep Queen Mary's A & E open. A few days ago I had the most acute asthma attack, so bad that I needed resuscitation.

I thank God for Queen Mary's A & E and the medical staff; without them or the fact that Queen Mary's was so near to my home I know that I would be dead.

Yours

Susan M
25th January 2008
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I would not be alive today if I had the longer journey to the Princess Royal [Farnborough] or the Queen Elizabeth [Woolwich] hospitals.

After I suffered a heart attack, the ambulance arrived quickly. the paramedic worked on me all the way to Queen Mary's - a journey of six to eight minutes.

Within minutes of arrival, I has a cardiac arrest. Shortly after being resuscitated , I had another. The doctors told me I had been a challenge for the medical team and I was very lucky to be alive.

Thank you to the staff and the closeness of Queen Mary's A & E.
Valerie Watts, Robin Hill Drive, Chislehurst - from Bromley Extra 25/1/08

The Scandal of Mixed Sex Wards

Naturally, in an emergency, you would be grateful of a bed in any part of the hospital, even if it were in the corridor, although emergency beds are normally in individual booths. However, when you are moved to a ward, is it not reasonable to expect that you (or your teenage daughter or elderly mother) would be able to be moved to one that was caring for patients of the same sex as you (or them)? Despite the Conservatives in the 1990s pledging to abolish mixed sex wards, they didn't. Despite the Labour Party pledging in 1997 to abolish mixed sex wards it has now withdrawn that pledge, suggesting today that the only way to make single sex wards work would be to put each patient in their own individual ward.

What nonsense!

Once again our politicians are chipping away at all that was excellent about our National Health Service, pushing us into accepting this change "because there is no alternative". There is an alternative, that is voting for a party that will rebuild first-rate services for local people, including the local health provision, that is: Independents to Save Queen Mary's Hospital.

Consultation Proposals to close Queen Mary's Hospital, Sidcup's A & E mean a disaster waiting to happen

With more people in our area, including more young, more old, more sick, more vulnerable, not forgetting a major A-road into London, we should be INCREASING our hospital services. However, the consultation report published last week proposes, in all of the options, closing the A & E at Queen Mary’s. This means that, if the report is accepted, that the A & E at Queen Mary’s will definitely close.

With the closure of the A & E there will also be the loss of maternity, emergency surgery and the intensive care unit. The top part of the Queen Mary’s site will become redundant and will be sold off for development as happened at Orpington and Bromley Hospitals. Nearly all of the patients will have to travel to Farnborough, Woolwich or Dartford, 3 hospitals that, as well as being further away, are already running to capacity in their A & E departments. If the A & E closes it will mean a disaster.

This is nothing short of an obscenity from a government that is spinning the fact that under it health care is improving, with local politicians who were unable to stop the closure of Bromley Hospital or the A & E at Orpington hospital.

We will continue to state the obvious, that the further you have to travel in an emergency, the more at risk patients will be from dying. We must as a community, all protest at these proposals, by whatever means.

Letter to Bromley Extra

Your report Prof. Sir George Alberti as saying, in relation to the likely loss of A & E services at Queen Mary’s Hospital, that “it is obvious that no change is not an option, both clinically and economically.” To our minds this is the comment of someone totally out of touch with reality.

Clinically, the further one has to travel in an emergency, the greater the risk of mortality.

Economically, the planned NHS computer system that was originally to cost £2 billion, has now reached £12 billion. It will probably cost have £20 billion by the time it is implemented. This is enough money to keep Queen Mary’s going for over 200 years.

We used to have six A & Es in the area, soon we will be down to 2.

Sir George says, “If change is needed, let’s get on with it.” Yes, we agree that change is needed, but in improving our local hospitals, not closing them down bit by bit.

FROM 6 A & Es to JUST TWO IN 10 YEARS

Accident & Emergency departments in the outer south east London area in the process of reducing in number from six to just two in 10 years.

When Orpington Hospital lost its A&E in 2000 the local residents were assured by the Hospital’s Board that Bromley Hospital and Farnborough Hospital would cover the extra work and that there were no further closures planned. When Bromley Hospital closed in its entirety in 2003 the local residents were assured by the Hospital’s Board that Beckenham Hospital and the rebuilt Farnborough Hospital would cope and that there were no further closures planned. Now we have recommendations to close two more A&Es from Queen Mary’s and Lewisham.

There are well over 1,000,000 people living and working in the area covered by these four hospitals and the recommendation to service the A&E needs of these patients in just two hospitals is madness.

The recent briefing on behalf of the Primary Care Organisations and Hospital Trusts in the outer south east London area states that “everyone is very excited about the opportunity…” and that “…a move towards two hospitals would be preferred to deliver maximums benefits in terms of improving patient care.” These are the comments of the senior clinicians who are supposed to have the health needs of the local people first and foremost. But they don’t…they have finance.

Despite Queen Mary’s A&E treating tens of thousands of patients each year, including over 20,000 children, it is in the firing line for closure. Once the A&E unit closes, the maternity unit will close. We will then lose the intensive care unit. All the buildings at the top of the site will then become redundant and we will see the land sold of for residential development as happened at Orpington Hospital and Bromley Hospital.

Fifty years ago we were slowly building a National Health Service, free for all, that was becoming the envy of the world, putting patients first. Now, piece by piece that same health service is being dismantled by governments of both hues and senior clinicians, who are putting finance first and patients second.

We are all entitled to proper medical care within reasonable reach. We will all, wherever we live, end up travelling further in an emergency (as well as for planned treatment), with an increased risk of mortality . This must not be allowed to happen.