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PRESS RELEASE
HANDS OFF THE CONQUEST CAMPAIGN
LET THE IRP HEAR YOUR VOICE
PLEASE HELP
As you probably know, the Save the DGH Campaign were delighted that East Sussex County Council Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee were not happy with the decision to downgrade Eastbourne Maternity Unit and have referred the matter to the Secretary of State for Health, Alan Johnson, to review the decision made by our local Primary Care Trust (PCT). The Secretary of State for Health has decided that the matter requires a full review and has passed it on to the Independent Reconfiguration Panel (IRP).
During a full review the IRP will consider whether proposed changes to health services will ensure the provision of safe, sustainable and accessible services for local people. The focus of all reviews is the patient and quality of care. As part of the review process the IRP considers written evidence, makes site visits and gathers information from all interested parties.
Following collection of evidence the IRP will submit a report containing recommendations to the Health Secretary. The IRP provides advice only. The final decisions on changes will be made by the Health Secretary.
Last week there was a letter in the local papers from Dr Peter Barrett, Chair of the IPR asking for local people to give their views and give information that was not submitted or heard during the consultation process.
Please can you write to, or ask to meet, Dr Barrett and give your views why Eastbourne Maternity should not be downgraded. contact details are:-
For the attention of Dr Peter Barrett, Chair IPR
Email: info@irpanel.org.uk or telephone: 020 7389 8055 or postal address: First Floor, 11 Strand, London, WC2N 5HR.
If you want some idea of what to write, please read below. Please can you do this. It is absolutely VITAL! If you represent a Group, then say who you are and why you are against the downgrading.
Many thanks and best wishes
Liz Walke
If you are pregnant you may say that you would be worried about giving birth at home or in a local midwife-led unit as if there is an emergency you would be over 30 minutes away from the nearest consultant-led obstetric unit. How would you get there? If by road very congested (A259 one of the worst roads in the country), public transport well over two hours, and ambulance may take some while to reach you and if midwife can’t deal with it, paramedics won’t be able to etc etc.
If you have children you could say you are worried that paediatrics (children’s hospital services) will be affected as well as maternity, and that would be difficult for family, access, not knowing area, doctors, danger when there’s an emergency, time taken to get to unit when there’s emergency etc.
If you are a businessman you can say that Eastbourne is the fasting growing family town in the South East and the birth-rate is rising, employing staff, time off for staff longer and loss of work hours, etc etc.
Other points:
- ALL Eastbourne GP’s against downgrading
- ALL local MP’s against downgrading
- The local Bishop(Bishop of Lewes)is against downgrading
- Eastbourne Borough Council (and other local Councils) against downgrading
- Unsafe adding time to journey in emergency situation
- family and friends support more difficult
- How do you cope with other siblings when mum in labour and not local?
- Carbon footprint
- Increased financial burden – cost of going over to Hastings and staying there
- How do mum’s and babies get back from Hastings after birth
- Post-natal depression more likely (due to anxiety)
- Midwives not got obstetric support close by (increased anxiety, won’t be able to recruit)
- Stand-alone midwife-led units (which is what Eastbourne is due to change to) are not proven to be safer than Maternity unit unless in the same building! In fact they are less safe!
- No medical intervention such as caeserean sections, epidurals and the like will be carried out in Eastbourne.
- It’s not just Maternity – all emergency essential services will as a consequence be at risk of downgrading.
Make it clear that you are against any downgrading of Eastbourne DGH Maternity Unit as it is unsafe and nobody wants it!
Many thanks
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Please also read the following attachments
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