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I think that:
An SNP Government will reverse the Labour-Liberal Democrat government’s decision to downgrade the Accident and Emergency department at Monklands Hospital.
Since the Labour-Liberal Democrat government took control Scotland has seen a host of health service closures and centralisations across the country. The SNP believes health services should be local with health boards elected by local people and not appointed by central government.
Because: Monklands is just the latest example of out-of-touch, centralised control. The SNP believe the decision to downgrade the Monklands A&E is deeply flawed, illogical and a risk to the people of Lanarkshire.
We believe all three A&E units in Lanarkshire should be retained. Monklands is one of the most cost effective and Wishaw is already running over capacity. Lanarkshire also has some of the greatest rates of deprivation and poverty in Scotland.
It is therefore vital the people of Lanarkshire have direct access to their accident and emergency services. To achieve that we must keep Monklands open - only the SNP is offering that option.
You can help the campaign by signing our online petition. We can also then keep you updated so you can then tell your friends and family about how the SNP’s commitment to keep Scottish health services local.
Lanarkshire has some of the greatest rates of deprivation and poverty in Scotland. Yet the Labour-Liberal Democratic government have decided to downgrade one of its Accident & Emergency units at the Monklands Hospital in Airdrie.
Since the Labour-Liberal Democrat government took control Scotland has seen a host of health service closures and centralisations across the country. The SNP believes health services should be local with health boards elected by local people and not appointed by central government.
Governments both pre and post devolution have provided little or no vision or national strategy for the health service in Scotland, which has left unelected and unaccountable health boards to do their own thing for better or for worse.
This cannot continue. Particularly in the case of Monklands.
The centralisation agenda has been promoted by politicians who claim that increasing medical specialization by consultants leads to better quality and safer care for patients.
Increased specialisation actually requires greater numbers of consultants working together and therefore demands greater numbers of larger and larger hospitals. These in turn require larger catchment areas to provide sufficient numbers of the many unusual conditions to allow skills to be maintained.
This, along with legislative pressures like the European Working Time Directive, has seen a Scotland-wide drive towards the centralisation agenda.
The idea that big is better has underpinned many of the changes in the NHS in the last few years. The continued concentration of acute hospital services without sustaining local access to acute care will make services increasingly remote from many communities.
These are the reasons also underpinning the decision to downgrade Monklands.
The SNP is opposed to this downgrading and pledges to keep open all three of Lanarkshire’s Accident & Emergency Units as we prepare for Government in 2007.
We believe it is vital that the people of Lanarkshire have direct access to their Accident & Emergency services.
Figures obtained by the SNP show that the threatened Monklands A&E department in Airdrie provides the best value for money in Lanarkshire. These figures show that it costs £56 per head to treat an attendance at Monklands compared to £72 and £70 for Wishaw and Hairmyres hospitals.
Previously released figures also showed that Wishaw A&E is already working at more than 20-per cent over capacity where some people have had to wait over 19 hours for treatment.
The medical and financial assumptions which form the basis for the downgrading are highly suspect and in some instances do not stand up to detailed scrutiny as these figures show.
The SNP believes these figures strengthen the party's pledge to reverse the Monklands downgrading and keep all three of Lanarkshire's A&E departments open.
In a debate in the Scottish Parliament the SNP gave over half their Parliamentary time to debate a motion calling for the Parliament to reject the case for the downgrading of the A&E unit at Monklands Hospital.
Yet whilst North Lanarkshire's Labour MSPs have voiced their opposition to the downgrading of the Monklands A&E they failed to support the motion.
The SNP has already shown that the case against reducing the number of A&E units in Lanarkshire has not been made. Monklands A&E is the best value for money and Wishaw is operating at 120% capacity. This shows there is clearly a case for retaining all three A&E departments in Lanarkshire.
There is now only one chance left to save the unit after the Labour Executive's decision to go ahead with downgrading Monklands A&E department. Electing an SNP administration will ensure the Monklands decision is reversed three of Lanarkshire's A&E units are retained.
Related Links:
www.snp.org
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