Newry MLA raises concerns at briefing on breast and stroke services

SDLP Newry and Armagh MLA Justin McNulty has raised concerns about the impact on local patients and ambulance services if plans to centralise breast assessment and stroke services proceed.

McNulty attended a briefing with Health officials on the plans and again raised his serious concerns about travel times and patient care.

He told Newry Times, “Along with party colleague, I met with senior Health officials including the permanent Secretary Richard Pengelly this morning on the future of breast assessment and stroke services within the Southern Trust area.

“We continued to raise the very significant concerns we’ve shared with the Department before relating to the impact that reshaping these services, which cannot simply be a by-word for service stripping, will have on patients and health service staff in our communities.

“The proposals, as they currently stand, create a significant geographic gap in services in the Southern area,” he insisted.

“This will mean increased travel times, pressures on an already stretched ambulance service, additional stress for patients and, importantly, the loss of well-performing units.

McNulty added, “We are making constructive contributions to the process, including looking at all-island modelling.

“We will be a strong voice for local patients and health service staff.”

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Posted by Newry Times News on Jun 19 2019. Filed under Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry