Help UNISON lobby against the privatisation of NHS musculoskeletal (MSK) services in West Sussex!
UNISON’s South East regional office and campaign lobby groups have expressed deep concern at the Coastal West Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group’s (CCG) decision to privatise these services (worth £235m) to BUPA and Central Surrey Healthcare. This has resulted in a welcome delay to the privatisation of these services at St Richards and Worthing hospitals. It will allow for an independent impact assessment to determine whether the contract could affect other services, including A&E, at the two hospitals.
This CCG decision is even more concerning if BUPA’s recent performance within West Sussex is taken into account. In the summer of 2013, BUPA closed its Oakhurst Grange care home in Crawley due to a damning Care Quality Commission Inspection report. The CQC found vulnerable elderly people lying soaked in their own urine, bed linen soiled with faeces, and many other examples of poor care.
The Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) meets in private on 25 November, followed by a public debate the next day. This will decide the fate of the contract. Please help lobby the committee into rejecting this proposal by attending the protest outside this meeting. It takes place at:
CCG Headquarters, 1 The Causeway, Goring (50 yards from Durrington-on-Sea rail station) at 1.45pm on Wednesday 26 November.
The county council’s Health & Social Care Select Committee meets on 5 December at 11:15am to scrutinise the decision and potentially refer the decision to the Secretary of State if they have concerns.