CAMPAIGN TO RE-INSTATE THE URGENT TREATMENT CENTRE (UTC) TO A 24/7 SERVICE AT WEST CORNWALL HOSPITAL.
West Cornwall HealthWatch (WCHW), an independent campaigning group based in West Penwith, launched the ‘public arm’ of its campaign with a stall on Saturday 24th at Mazey Day in Penzance.
To the sound of parades, music and thousands of people enjoying themselves, members of West Cornwall HealthWatch collected 890 signatures on the first day of their petition which demands that the UTC is reinstated as a 24/7 service, as was originally set up. Indeed, for large parts of the day people were queuing up in order not only to sign the petition but to recount their experiences of either succeeding in getting great treatment at West Cornwall or being re-routed to Camborne Redruth Community Hospital and/or Treliske A&E.
Jane Varker, the Chairperson of WCHW said “Many of the experiences that people are telling us about, reinforce our concerns that people are giving up and waiting until the following day to get treatment, with a few resorting to treating an injury themselves. Neither of these options we believe, are perfect and fall short of the Cornwall Integrated Care Boards often repeated mantra of “the right care, in the right place, at the right time”. With the Urgent Treatment Centre currently closing at 9pm and reopening at 8am the following morning we are extremely concerned that residents and visitors who are ill, at risk or in pain are being forced to find transport to take them between 25 and 35 miles to an already overstretched A&E department at Treliske hospital. This policy makes no provision for people who do not have access to private transport and/or are unable to pay for a taxi. Neither does it make any sense from an environmental perspective, when Cornwall Council recognises that we have a climate emergency and aims to become carbon neutral by 2030”.
WCHW has also recently written to all the local town and parish councils in Penwith, suggesting they may wish to pass a resolution on the reinstatement of the night time service and the first responses are already back from both St Just, Penzance Town Council and Gwinear- Gwithian Parish Council.
The campaign organisers are clear that the responsibility to reinstate the night time service lies fairly and squarely with the Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust (RCHT) and the Integrated Care Board (ICB).
This means providing proper and effective support systems in order to retain their current staff and to successfully recruit new staff. It is vital that RCHT ensures an adequate level of medical cover to provide a safe and happy environment for both staff and patients so that the current staff can once again provide the service that the residents of Penwith deserve.