It’s never too late to say sorry

Mar 18 2010 by Mairon Laird, West Lothian Courier

HAVING read Councillor McGinty’s attempt to blame the SNP and the Action to Save St. John’s councillors for the removal of services from St John’s hospital I think it is high time that this Labour fantasy is brought into the real world through some hard facts.

So, lets start at the beginning…..

From 2003 Labour presided over the removal of trauma orthopaedics and emergency surgery from St John’s with both services centralised in Edinburgh.

From 2004 to 2007 Labour presided over a drip by drip removal of services from St John’s. During this period the very future of St John’s was in serious jeopardy.

In May 2007 Labour were removed from power at both Holyrood and local level and a line was drawn in the sand by the new SNP cabinet secretary Nicola Sturgeon who made it clear that no further services would be removed from St John’s and that the Labour policy of centralising hospital services was dead.

Since then genuine progress has indeed been made.

Firstly, NHS Lothian have made it clear that St John’s has a key role to play in their acute hospital strategy.

St John’s is busier that ever and the threat to the very future of St John’s has been removed with the debate now turning to the nature of that future and how St John’s can best meet the needs of West Lothian and the wider Lothians.

A St John’s Stakeholder Group of three local elected members and NHS Board members, with local patient and staff representation, is now tasked with helping to shape this future and already evidence that Labour’s centralisation agenda has been replaced with investment in St John’s is clear with, since 2007, some £26 million being committed to our hospital.

Some examples of this are the £3.3million expansion of the endoscopy unit. The £8.2 million investment to provide a new short-stay elective surgery unit, the enhancement of the birthing rooms at St John’s as a key element of the NHS Lothian Maternity Strategy and a £12 million investment in the fabric of the building.

In addition, staffing levels have been increased.

In Women’s and Children Services an additional consultant paediatrician, an additional obstetrician and eight additional midwives have been appointed.

Two additional consultant anaesthetists, and two additional staff grade doctors are now in place to support the increase in surgical activity at St John’s and additional locum consultants for colorectal, orthopaedics and urology have been employed.

Within the general medicine directorate an additional haematology consultant has been appointed and, since the beginning of 2009, an additional specialist consultant cardiologist has been working week days at St John’s.

In addition, two more plastic surgeons have been appointed.

Within ear, nose and throat services an additional nurse practitioner and two extra registered nurses have been appointed and within accident and emergency two additional consultants have been appointed.

These hard facts clearly show the reality of what has been achieved since 2007.

We have successfully removed the Labour threats to the very existence of St John’s and are now working hard in partnership with NHS Lothian to shape the new future for our local hospital.

Working together, the SNP and the Action To Save St. John’s councillors have, as the above facts clearly demonstrate, made a real difference.

It is all too easy to carp from the sidelines but it is disappointing indeed to see Labour politicians, the very people responsible for the removal of services from St John’s, seeking to use St. John’s as a political football in a pathetic attempt to further their own ambitions.

A word of advice for Labour. It is never too late to say “sorry”!

A full and unfettered apology to the people of West Lothian from Labour for their removal of services from St John’s is long overdue.

We will not hold our breath for this however!

Councillor Peter Johnston (SNP)

Leader of The Council