50 signatures reached
To: Alok Sharma MP
The NHS in Crisis - Reading West
We ask that Alok Sharma MP stand up for the NHS and the people of Reading West and demand that Jeremy Hunt, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, review NHS budgets. We want him to ensure that our NHS is properly funded in Reading West and able to provide good quality health care to all.
Why is this important?
We are concerned that the Conservative Government’s under-funding of the NHS has meant:
In Reading:
• The Royal Berkshire Hospital (RBH) is expected to make additional cuts of £45 million by 2020.
• GP appointments are becoming harder to get with many patients having to wait weeks to see their doctor.
• GP surgeries, like Circuit Lane Surgery, have been unable to provide good quality care and have been rated inadequate.
• A&E departments are unable to cope, with many patients having to wait for more than 4 hours – failing a key target. The Royal Berkshire Hospital has missed this target.
Nationally:
• Patients are waiting for hours on trolleys in corridors.
• Thousands of non-emergency operations have been cancelled.
• NHS budgets are not keeping up with an ageing and increasing population and cuts to social care budgets are putting further pressure on the NHS.
• The UK spends a lower proportion on health than other EU countries resulting in fewer doctors, nurses and beds per patient.
• NHS staff are leaving due to poor pay and increasing workloads and stress. In 2017 33,000 nurses left the NHS.
