It seems controversial changes to healthcare in Cornwall made earlier this year were not only inconvenient and unpopular, but possibly illegal too. The decision to relocate all treatment of specialist cancers from Cornwall to Plymouth in Devon attracted significant public opposition, but Cornwall’s NHS Trust put the plans into effect in April anyway.
The Western Morning News have now revealed the decision was taken despite legal advice stating it warranted a full public consultation with the people of Cornwall, and not to do so would be ‘plainly unlawful’.
Angry protesters outside County Hall, Truro
Really though, you might ask, why all the fuss? Derriford has a fairly decent reputation vis a vis oncology, and the NHS Trust’s initial counter argument – that the more operations a centre does, the better its success rate becomes – seems sound. What does a quick hop over the border matter - even to the staunchest of Cornish nationalists – when the ‘C’ word’s being thrown around? Well, here’s the sticking point. As those of you armed with an AA Road Atlas and a working knowledge of Cornish geography will know, what constitutes a quick trip for certain Cornwallians is a significantly longer trek for others. A spot of Google mapping puts the distances into perspective. In the worst case scenario, our hypothetical cancer patient living in Lands End would face an 87 mile, 2 hour trek just to get to Derriford Hospital.
Derriford Workhouse...I mean, Hospital.
Distances (and the fuel costs that come with them) notwithstanding, a quick dig into the history of the story unearths a consistent disregard for public feeling and flawed systems of democracy. Plans to shift cancer treatment facilities from the Royal Cornwall Hospital, Truro to Derriford Hospital, Plymouth first surfaced in late 2008. The reaction was largely negative and 32,000 people signed a petition in opposition. It got all the way to No. 10 – look! Councillors of various political affiliation issued verbose criticism. Conservative councillor Jim Currie described a ’one-way street with all the services in Cornwall going across the Tamar (river, into Devon) in one direction’.
Scrutiny committees were set up to gauge opinion across both Cornwall and Devon. A final planned meeting for the isolated Isles of Scilly was delayed indefinitely due to illness and transport problems. Irony duly noted. Finally, a chaotically scrappy council meeting – one disgusted councillor apparently walks out, hurling accusations of ‘democratic thuggery’ – gives the a-okay, allowing the relocation of services to proceed. Even then, the vote was only carried with a slim majority of 8 members in favour, versus 6 opposed (1 council member absented from the vote). A landslide it was not.
At a time when public trust in authority figures is already so low, you almost expect extra sensitivity when dealing with the recipients of services like the NHS, particularly when they are as vocal as those in Cornwall often are. Instead, as in this case where the law even stated that public consultation was non-optional, people are first left feeling disappointed, and later deceived. Is it any wonder trust is such a pertinent issue?
Reports in August surfaced suggesting NHS Plymouth has ‘put out to tender’ its highly regarded Breast Cancer Screening services. The service has a wide catchment area, including East Cornwall and West Devon, and is run out of none other than Derriford Hospital. With no resolution as yet, it’s looking like a ‘to be continued’ situation. I’ll include developments as they arise in later posts.
For now though, it would seem the prognosis is pretty grim.
Tags: Cancer, Derriford Hospital, Health, Western Morning News
October 21, 2009 at 6:38 pm |
what, grim as in…?
October 23, 2009 at 9:56 am |
[...] post re: the proposed relocation of specialist cancer care in Cornwall to Plymouth, Devon (catch up here), the latest developments suggest the move may not be sealed quite [...]