Published: 13 June, 2014
by TOM FOOT
BOSSES at Whittington Hospital stormed out of a board meeting after NHS campaigners delivered a petition containing 3,700 signatures.
The petition, printed on dozens of sheets of paper and presented to the board, raised a range of concerns about creeping privatisation, policy decisions – including the latest A&E shake-up at the Archway hospital – and the threat of cuts to frontline services.
It was organised by north London branch of the Revolutionary Communist Group, which says it works with the Defend Whittington Hospital Coalition campaign group in monitoring the NHS trust.
After campaigners entered the boardroom and unfurled the huge petition, chairman Steve Hitchins instructed his board colleagues to leave the room.
He told the protesters: “Board members are not feeling particularly enthusiastic about the route you’re taking. If you had invited yourself along, anything would be possible. To come and hijack our meeting is just not acceptable.”
The petition says that transforming the hospital into a “community care organisation”
would lead to hospital closures and questioned the use of former car parts company Unipart as consultants over changes to the “patient experience”.
A spokesman for the campaign group said: “The board’s stance towards those who not only need the services most, but also pay their vast salaries, shows their complete arrogance and disregard towards the public.”
(Source: Islington Tribune)
