1) Photo shoot cancelled for today cancelled 2) CCG issue statement on Meadow Court 3) One Place East Statement

1 -The photo shoot today is cancelled due to not enough numbers.

2 - At 14:33 the following email was sent to me by the CCG

Dear Andy

 

I understand that you have now received the FOI response confirming that the CCG holds no such emails or documents regarding the development/demolition of Meadow Court as we are not aware of any plans. 

You also mention a ‘board member’s’ comments at the governing body meeting on 30 November 2017.  I was at the meeting and cannot recall any member of the CCG governing body making such comments.  I have checked with colleagues and with our company secretary who concur.  You may be aware that non-voting attendees sit at the table also, for example from HealthWatch and the local authority.

I also wanted to advise that the public section of the agenda was placed at the beginning of the meeting, as it has been for similar meetings, so that comments could be heard before consideration of the proposals and decision making.  We have done this following previous feedback from stakeholders, but are happy to hold this at the end of the meeting in future if preferred.

I trust this is helpful. You can publish this email as I welcome the facts being shared with the public.

CCG Director

I understand the person who made the statement calling into the consultation into doubt was a non-voting attendee. An error on my part.

NELFT the NHS trust who own Meadow Court are yet to issue a statement on the issue.

3 Jon Abrams of One Place East has given me the following

"I was shocked at the way in which relatives and carers of loved ones at Meadow Court were treated at the recent CCG Governing Body Meeting. To all extents and purposes, the ‘voice’ of carers and patients were ignored demonstrating a lack of dignity, respect and compassion. 

The Board ignored many of the pertinent questions about the quality of care, health outcomes following relocation, and the standard of local care homes. Even if a transfer is carried out well, there are risks. Minimising ‘transfer trauma’ necessitates an ongoing piece of work involving the whole system.

Dementia patients and older people have human rights too. And the Board's decision to in effect eject dementia patients from their homes is a tragedy."

Photo shoot 6:15pm Monday 11th December outside Fulwell Well Cross Medical Centre 1 Tomswood Hill, Ilford IG6 2HG

Redbridge Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) voted to close Meadow Court Nursing Home at their meeting on 30th November. The Chair of the CCG is Dr Metha who practices at the Fulwell Cross Medical Centre

A Recorder story including a picture from our recent photo shoot is here Recorder story

The meeting did not follow usual procedure because public questions were at the beginning of the meeting rather than at the end of the meeting. This prevented the public asking questions about what was said the meeting.

During the meeting a board member cast doubt upon whether the consultation was a real one without a predetermined outcome. I tweeted about her comments at the time.

Andy Walker‏ @Andywalker1945 Nov 30

Dyamite statement from board member implying plans exist to sell off meadow court for housing and kept from committee! Vote passed for closure no attempt to answer public questions. Heckles of shamful and disgusting from floor. (apologies for poor spelling)

I have since written to both CCG and NELFT (who own Meadow Court) asking the following:

All documents or emails either within your organisations or to external contractors about the future of Meadow Court regarding the demolition and/or development of Meadow Court dated before 14:15 on 30th November 2017.

An issue I was unable to raise at the end of the meeting due to the change in procedure putting questions at the beginning of the meeting rather than at the end.

Despite some email exchanges on the issue between the NHS and I, the request for information relating to documents regarding documents remains unanswered, although the NHS have written to say no plans exist to sell Meadow Court.

I have set a deadline of 5pm on the 11th December for NELFT and the CCG to answer the above. If they do not say whether they have have any such documents, I will seek legal advice through a crowd funding site to see if any legal challenge can be brought.

We own our NHS and that means reasonable questions about our NHS should be answered by NHS mangers. However, the meeting of the 30th November was altered to prevent reasonable questions being asked about what board members said. I hope the NHS will reply by 5pm this Monday and the photo shoot cancelled.

Should you wish to attend please call me on 07956 263088. We need no more than eight people to make the point. Please be prompt as the surgery is closed between 6pm and 6:30pm and we do not want to inconvenience patients.

Great News: Cllr Athwal to speak at meeting to call for maternity to return to King George Hospital

Delighted to report that Cllr Jas Athwal will speak at a meeting calling for maternity to come back to King George Hospital at 6pm Wednesday 17^th January 2018. More details to follow in due course.

Photo shoot today

Thanks you to everyone attending today. The Ilford Recorder and Wanstead and Woodford Guardian will have photos of us in a more orderly state.

The below is a link to a facebook live interview with Bob Archer and Bob Littlewood

Interview

Bring your banners for the photo shoot on 5th December

Be much appreciated if political parties, faith groups, trade unions and resident associations could bring banners for the photo shoot tomorrow outside King George Hospital for 1pm.

A good turnout with plenty of banners might help the photo and story get more prominence in local press this week.

Photo Shoot Outside King George Hospital 1pm Tuesday 5th December

The Wanstead and Woodford Guardian have requested that save King George Hospital  (KGH) A&E campaigners meet outside KGH tomorrow at 1pm for a photo for their paper this week to celebrate that NHS managers are no longer working on a plan to close KGH A&E in 2019.

I have spoken to the Ilford Recorder and the East London Enquirer and I expect them to send photographers too.

The battle to save KGH A&E is not yet won. The PWC report calls for a new model of care for North East London to be drawn up by BHRUT.

It the task of campaigners to make sure this new model includes KGH as an acute hospital.

We will be organising a meeting to early in the New Year to call for a mid-wife maternity unit on the KGH site as part of the campaign to help keep KGH as an acute hospital.