Trolley wait not on

We often talk about the ‘Golden Hour’ having a massive effect on a patient’s chance of survival, what effect can a 19 hour wait for treatment possibly have on mortality rates?

Edwin Poots does have to find savings to assuage his colleague, the finance minister, but he should be wary of targeting cuts at acute care. If our A&E system is in crisis now, what will it be like with £80 million less to spend? Such a cut would not just be foolhardy, it would also place lives at risk.

I have spoken to many staff at Antrim A&E who say that if the Causeway’s acute service closes as planned the system at Antrim will simply collapse.

It may not even always be practical to transport critically ill patients from the North Coast down to Antrim, considering the main road is frequently closed because of accidents or bad weather. We need to look at the best ways of providing health care, but we mustn’t gamble with people’s lives.

There are savings to be made in the Health Service through efficiency drives and working smarter. We can provide better value for money without affecting life saving services. If we can find the cash to give MLAs a pay rise, or to employ countless highly paid Spads, surely we can find a little extra for acute services.

Neil McNickle,

Lagan Valley Conservative Association