Workers Party representative Hugh Scullion hits out at 'lack of detail' in plans for Health Service

Commenting following the closure of Fairhill Health Centre in Magherafelt, Mr Scullion said while a sum of money for waiting lists has been mentioned no detail has been provided on if this money will be used to build capacity within the Health Service to deal with waiting lists or if it is yet another gift to the private sector.

He said in a statement: “There is absolutely no mention of any funding to meet the pay rise for NHS staff within Northern Ireland, who once again find themselves the lowest paid staff across the UK. This not only flags up a

lack of concern for those workers but shows the absence of any joined up thinking in relation to poverty and the causes of poverty.

"There is no mention within the proposals on how to do deal with the crisis in Home Care and the problems caused by the privatisation of domiciliary care services and the impact this has on releasing patients from hospital. Nor is there any mention of a serious intent to fund health prevention in any substantial and sustainable plans to improve the health of our citizens.

“The Health Service in Northern Ireland has over the past five decades been through several reorganizations. Billions of pounds have been squandered on new structures each one having a detrimental effect on the delivery of much needed Services. Much of what is wrong with the Health Service can be put right by taking a new direction.

“The Workers Party believes that what is needed is an open, transparent, and courageous debate on what type of Health Service is required to deliver quality outcomes and deal with decades of health inequalities.

“That debate must challenge vested interests both inside and outside the Health and Social Care Service. Our politicians in the past have agreed on many costly Health Service reorganizations that wasted billions of pounds and delivered nothing but privatization and fragmentation, resulting in outcomes that were a detriment to patients and Service users, and millions of pounds being paid to private consultancy firms who were not interested in the best clinical outcomes, but a cost cutting exercise to balance the books.”