Hospital Services (Worcestershire)

Debate between Sajid Javid and Karen Lumley

Wednesday 2nd March 2011 Westminster Hall

[Karen Lumley (Redditch) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to speak under your chairmanship, Mr Hood. I am delighted to secure the debate on hospital care in Worcestershire. To put hospital care in Worcestershire in context, I should explain that we have two acute hospitals and a treatment centre. The acute hospitals are based in Worcester and my constituency of Redditch, and the treatment centre is in Kidderminster. In other parts of the county, we have community hospitals, which play a great role in delivering the highest level of care to our constituents.

The emphasis today is of course on the new cancer care facility, but all areas of the NHS trust are working hard and playing important roles. Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust has recently appointed a new chairman, who is determined that the mission of the trust will be to make all care patient-orientated. To do that, the care offered, the facilities available and the attitude of all staff must put patients and their well-being first.

I shall begin by sharing with hon. Members some of the successes within the trust. The national target of ensuring that 80% of patients brought to accident and emergency by ambulance staff are seen within 30 minutes has been surpassed by our trust. The benefits of receiving treatment quickly are self-explanatory. Obviously, the more quickly a person is seen, the less likely they are to deteriorate, and the ambulance staff can get back to doing what they do best.

I spent some time in A and E at the Alexandra hospital and was incredibly impressed by what I saw. The staff do an amazing job, sometimes in very challenging circumstances. Guided by Mr Christopher Hetherington, a consultant in the department, I saw at first hand how staff dealt efficiently with arriving patients. I was struck by their professionalism and commitment to their patients.

Despite the added challenge of the snow and bad weather in December and January in Worcestershire, the trust’s ambulance staff achieved a performance rating of more than 90%—the result of focus and dedication. I look forward to seeing them later this month when I do a night shift with an ambulance crew in Redditch.

Successes have also been shown in the results of patient surveys. The national maternity survey from 2010 showed that mothers in Worcestershire were impressed by the maternity care that they received. Those who completed the survey were pleased with all aspects of care, including care at home after leaving hospital. The trust now ranks in the top fifth for offering mothers choice. Choice should be at the forefront of the reorganisation that our NHS trusts face. If we are to create an NHS that is centred on patient care, offering patients choice about and influence over their treatment is essential.

[Sajid Javid (Bromsgrove) (Con)]

I echo my hon. Friend’s comments about Alexandra hospital. It is a hospital that people in her constituency and in my constituency share, and I know that constituents from far and wide respect the services that they receive, the quality of care and the dedication of the employees and the health care professionals. Does she agree that, along with Alexandra hospital and the other acute hospital that we have in our county, the community hospitals, such as the Princess of Wales community hospital in Bromsgrove, complement the health services on which our constituents rely in Worcestershire?

[Karen Lumley]

I thank my hon. Friend for his intervention. I totally agree with him. Many of my constituents in Redditch also use the Princess of Wales hospital. I have been there on many occasions and know what a fantastic job the staff do.

Effective hospitals rely on good facilities. Kidderminster hospital has recently acquired a state-of-the-art MRI scanner. It offers patients the best diagnostic procedures available. New services can now be offered, including breast scans and whole-body imaging. Some 9,400 scans a year can be performed with the machine. One-stop-shop access to out-patient clinics cuts waiting times and means that patients are in the clinics for as little time as possible. Developments such as those are lessening the postcode lottery effect in the NHS.

Worcestershire is awaiting a decision about whether a radiotherapy unit will be built at the Alexandra hospital in Redditch or the Worcestershire Royal hospital. I, of course, hope very much that it will be built at the Alexandra hospital in Redditch.