A&Es all over the country are under threat - from Hartlepool in the North to Margate in the South. But the full extent of the impact of closing A&E departments is still unknown. Evidence from Newark showed that when their A&E closed, death rates jumped by more than a third. * When NHS chiefs decided to close Newark A&E they promised that more lives would be saved. However, the opposite to this has happened - more lives have been put at risk and death rates have increased. We can’t let these closures happen across the country. We need a proper investigation into the impact of A&E closures before any more are closed or downgraded. Dr Clare Gerada, Chairman of the Royal College of General Practitioners agrees. The Newark data revealed by The Mail on Sunday points to a close association between A&E closures and mortality. It is clear the provision of emergency care is in crisis across the whole of the NHS. Before any further closures are contemplated, there must be a full, independent assessment of their impact on patients and on the system as a whole.’ * If the recent ‘backdoor’ privatisation of the NHS wasn’t enough, the unjustified closure of our A&E departments * Shocking proof A&E closures cost lives, Daily Mail http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2323141/Shocking-proof-Accident-Emergency-closures-cost-lives-Death-rate-jumps-THIRD-department-closes.html

Throughout the United Kingdom there is a forgotten group of people. A group of people, many thousands of them, with severe, life-shortening conditions who, because of medical advances are living well into adulthood when in the past they may not have been expected to, find themselves lost in limbo in a position when they are too old to use children's respite services and yet too young for the available adult respite services. Currently, all adult hospice services are set up largely to cater for much older adults suffering from cancer and other terminal illnesses, they are just as unsuitable a place for this age group of people to go to as children's respite services are. They find themselves stuck in the middle with nowhere to go. These respite breaks are vitally important to the young adults and their families, especially for the majority who still live at home with their parents, because it is the only time when the young adults get a break from their parents and for some they can be quite isolated at home so these breaks may be their only opportunity to socialise with others of a similar age. Equally as important if not more so is the break it gives families; the parents get a chance to relax and recharge their batteries, safe in the knowledge that their son/daughter is being well cared for and enjoying themselves. However, without any respite services the parents will have to provide constant care 24 hours a day 365 days a year without a break which will lead to high stress levels for the parents, carer burnout and many other health problems, because caring for a disabled adult with a life-shortening condition is a full-time job. Its not acceptable in any other job to be expected to work all year round without even a single day of rest, so why should it be acceptable in this case? The following articles were printed in The Glasgow Herald newspaper dated 10 May 2013, and they highlight the problems facing young disabled adults with life-shortening conditions. The links to these articles are as follows:- http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/young-adults-are-being-left-in-limbo-by-hospice-decision.21041635 http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/health/hospice-charity-sets-age-limit-on-services-for-young-people.21041823

Because patients from all over the country who suffer with rare and complex rheumatological conditions rely on the unique reservoir of knowledge, skills and practice which only this hospital offers. The ambiance of the historic hospital buildings in the centre of the city of Bath creates a family atmosphere for both staff and patients from which both benefit. It is also part of Bath's special heritage and has an important place in medical history. This is all clearly affirmed by the latest CQC inspections showing that the country's smallest Foundation Trust operates an excellent service for patients. For more details: www.savethemin.org.uk

It is important as the cuts are hurting the pensioners and the disabled, as because of the cuts social services and local councils are charging us a so called well being charge, this will only be well being to the council not us who will have to pay this on top of our rents which are high, £623.48 every four weeks.

This is so important as you are looking at a mother who already has a disability who is then at risk of having a child / children with disabilities themselves. THIS IS CAUSING IMMENSE PREVENTABLE SUFFERING. Estimates suggest in excess of 20,000 people have been affected to date. CLINICIANS ARE NOT BEING PROVIDED WITH THE NECESSARY SAFETY INFORMATION by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency and the European Medicines Agency. Without widespread awareness the number of people affected continues to grow. The impact on the family can be devastating with many ending up as full time carers. Because of this many Mother’s cannot pursue their careers and are reliant on benefits. The tax payer is providing the support services that are required throughout the child's lifetime. FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUESTS HAVE CONFIRMED that ONE child’s costs for Health, Education & Welfare will be in excess of £6 MILLION in their lifetime. IN EXCESS OF 20,000 PEOPLE ARE AFFECTED BY FACS! I have 4 children affected with the 2 youngest having Autism. I have become a full time carer and both boys are in specialist schools, as a parent you fear for their future as they will always need a level of support . Their cognitive functioning means they have low self esteem and depression and frequently self harm as they know no other way of expressing them selves. They live in pain on a daily basis with their joints and have few / no friends. Many families will end up with more than one child affected because although there may be facial features at birth they are often not recognised by the doctors and midwives and it is only as they get older and more problems present themselves that they realise there is something wrong. Many symptoms are diagnosed individually due to poor knowledge of Fetal Anti Convulsant Syndromes. WE WOULD LIKE A PUBLIC INQUIRY BY A HIGH COURT JUDGE TO INCLUDE: Independent Systematic Reviews • How medicines and medical products are regulated in the UK. • Why the Consumer has not been protected by British or EU Law. • Why successive governments have failed to improve flawed systems. As a mother I always put my children first and I would not choose to put them through a lifetime of pain, suffering, loneliness and dependence on others. I WOULD WANT THEM TO HAVE A CHANCE OF A FULFILLING LIFE OF THEIR OWN............THAT CHOICE WAS TAKEN AWAY! IF YOU ARE WORRIED DO NOT COME OFF OF YOUR MEDICATION BUT CONTACT YOUR GP / AND OR NEUROLOGIST! More information on the condition can be found at: https://www.oacscharity.org/about-fetal-anti-convulsant-syndromes YOU CAN HELP REDUCE SUFFERING AND SAVE BILLIONS OF POUNDS BY REQUESTING A PUBLIC INQUIRY AFTER THALIDOMIDE WE WERE TOLD IT WOULD NOT HAPPEN AGAIN........IT HAS HAS HAPPENED AGAIN BUT THE NUMBERS ARE FAR GREATER AND STILL RISING. WITHOUT CHANGE IT WILL CONTINUE TO HAPPEN!

Under the new qualifier, if you can walk from your vehicle to the other side of the road, you probably won't qualify for Higher Mobility Allowance! My Motability vehicle is my contact with the outside world. I can't use public transport, and would therefore be dependent on the goodwill of others. Many thousands are in this position, and would be trapped in their homes or deprived of the allowance under the current legislation. I have a degenerative condition of the spine. As things currently stand I would not qualify for the higher mobility allowance because it is deemed that by walking 20 metres you have sufficient mobility and therefore do not qualify. This is obviously not true. My condition means that it can be difficult to walk those distances. But under the rules as they stand I would not qualify. This will have a huge impact on my life, my wife and children. I was eligible for an adapted car, but under these news rules it may be that I don't qualify. There are countless people like me, facing losing mobility assistance and becoming prisoners in their own homes. The government must rethink this rule change.

Those who cannot afford £75,000 can defer payment until after their death, and nobody would be forced to sell their home in their lifetime. But once the bill is settled by disposal of the property, many ordinary families will be left with little to show for what their relative has worked for all their life. In Liverpool, where the average home is worth around £132,000, there would be just £57,000 left over after settling the contribution to care costs. Stephen Burke, head of charity United for All Ages, called it “the dampest of damp squibs”. He added: “It is a con of the worst sort. There are fairer and better alternatives. The Government could have raised the capital threshold of paying for care to £200,000.” Labour peer Lord Warner, who sat on the Dilnot Commission, said members thought the cost cap should have been £50,000 at most. He added: “At that level, it would mean on average no-one would have to dispose of more than about a third of the value of their housing assets.” Shadow Care Minister Liz Kendall said the package was a “small step forward” as the assets people could own and still qualify for help had increased five-fold from just £23,250. But she added: “It won’t be fair for people with modest homes.”

Under government changes to the NHS, local Councils have become responsible for certain health services, and for overall scrutiny of others. We people of Southampton are therefore calling on Southampton City Council to defend our public NHS from the invasion of private services. Please note that for the Southampton City Council to view a signature as valid, the signer should either live, study or work in the area of Southampton City Council. For most of our lifetimes, the NHS has been a public service giving free healthcare whenever we needed it. Now it is being broken up and privatised piecemeal under government reforms. Already in Southampton over a dozen private companies are competing for contracts to provide health services. This will fragment the NHS and make it more difficult to provide joined-up treatment for patients. Private providers have shareholders to please so they will tend to think about putting profits before patient care. Their contracts are not made public because of commercial confidentiality. All providers, even those who already work with the NHS, now have to tender competitively for contracts. Not only is this an expensive process which will be easier for large companies with big budgets, but also it will waste money that could have gone on patient care.

I believe the only way forward to address this justly is to stop NHS investigating itself and make Trusts accountable- financially! Therefore my suggestion is a fully Independent complaints system funded by a Complaints pool. The PHSO process currently costs over £30m per annum to investigate less than 2% of complaints brought to it..that 98% left unresolved! Funding for Independent Complaint Resolution could come by scrapping the ineffective PHSO process, we would save £m's and each Trust paying into a Complaints Pool (with Trusts failing at local resolution (first stage of complaints process) to pay in substantially more.) I feel there will be a willingness to keep costs low, implementation & learning lessons may be the real winners.

Cystic fibrosis is a life limiting condition affecting the respiratory and digestive system of sufferers. There is no cure at present only medical treatments to alleviate symptoms, fight infections and digest food. These medications need to be taken several times a day. Prescriptions now cost over £7 per item. CF patients should not have to pay for medications that keep them well and alive.

The LCP is under scrutiny because there are claims that the withdrawal of food and water and the administration of strong painkillers is speeding up the dying process. This can all happen without the consent or even the knowledge of the patient or their family. Each year nearly 130,000 patients are put on to the Liverpool Care Pathway. That’s around 356 deaths per day. A national audit by the Marie Curie Palliative Care Institute Liverpool and the Royal College of Physicians into the Liverpool Care Pathway found that last year, in 44 per cent of cases when conscious patients were placed on the pathway, there was no record that the decision had been discussed with them. That means that around 57,000 patients weren't informed that they had been put on the pathway last year. Our Story My mother Elise Devine was put on the Liverpool Care Pathway (LCP) at the Gosport War Memorial Hospital, after recovering from a kidney infection. There was no justification for this - which a Jury concluded 7 years later at her inquest. A visiting doctor, who had spoken to Elsie just before she was administered unjustified Morphine, noted in the medical file that she was “happy with no complaints and waiting for her daughter”. Her son Harry sat in the lounge area and chatted quite happily with his Mother, not knowing the LCP regime had already commenced by means of a Fentanyl patch (135 mcg morphine), which had been hidden under her clothes. He kissed his Mother goodnight and said I will see you tomorrow. The next morning she was comatose with more drugs that had been administered by a portable syringe driver which was put into her back and placed under her pillow out of sight. The LCP commenced without Elsie or her family's knowledge or consent, no one has justified why our Mother was placed on the LCP which subsequently ended her life in 2 days, and neither Harry nor I ever spoke to our dear Mother again. What we need to do Currently, there is no legal requirement to get consent from a patient or family member before a patient is placed on the LCP. The NHS website states that “while legal consent is not required to place a patient on the LCP, the fact that the plan is being considered should always be discussed with a relative or carer and, if possible, the patient themselves”. This needs to change. Please sign the petition to ensure that a law is enforced to protect us and our loved ones. A document is needed to sign to show that we agree and understand why we, or our family members, are being put on the terminal pathway and that we have given consent. We shouldn't have to fight for justice after death; the law should be there to protect us when we are alive. This affects all of us at some point. We all have the right to say goodbye to our loved ones. Please make this happen for all our sakes.

THE RIGHT TO LIVE saving lives not lining the pockets of the big pharma companies