Newton Aycliffe Health Centre challenge

Sedgefield

From: Sedgefield Conservatives

Graham Robb challenges Labour's Phil Wilson over Newton Aycliffe Health Centre 'Pledge'

Graham Robb, the Conservative's candidate for Sedgefield, who visited the Newton Aycliffe Health Centre with Dr Liam Fox, a former GP and member of the Shadow Cabinet to see the state of Newton Aycliffe Health Centre, has challenged Labour to get its facts right about future health provision in Newton Aycliffe.

Labour candidate, Phil Wilson is reported in the Northern Echo, Saturday 7 July, 2007 as saying that, “I have been on to the Primary Care Trust and have been informed that services (from Newton Aycliffe Health Centre) are to be moved to a new modern facility, less than a mile away, by the end of August." (p. 4)

Graham said:

"First, there are four services currently located in the Newton Aycliffe Health centre:

1. Health visitors, district and school nurses

Health visitors and district nurses use the Health Centre run clinics at the Health Centre. These clinics will now be run at the Pioneering Care Centre, which is a mile out of the town centre.

School nurses use it as a base to visit local schools, they will now have an office base at the Pioneering Care Centre.

2. Speech and language staff

It has yet to be confirmed that Speech and language staff will move to the Pioneering Health Centre, this is under-going consultation. If they were to move to the Pioneering Care Centre then the facilities would need significant work to accommodate sound proofing and technical requirements. They would also be moved away from important library services, which are currently located next door to the Aycliffe Health Centre.

3. The substance misuse service run by Tees, Esk and Wear Valley Mental Health Trust

No agreement has been made as to where these services are to be located.

4. Administrative support staff

Administrative support staff, who are vital in coordinating service provision from the centre are going to be moved seven and a half miles away to Merrington House, in Spennymoor.

Even the services which are being relocated to the Pioneering Care Centre are on a two year lease so the questions remains: where is the brand new Health Centre and adjoining library facility which the people of Newton Aycliffe have been promised for the last four years. It is at least two years away. In terms of health service provision these arrangements are a retrograde step and not an improvement.

Mr Robb said, "Given the track record of three years of delays and broken promises the idea that all these steps can be agreed and completed in six weeks is very unlikely."

"Third, the fact of the matter is that services that were all under one roof, albeit a leaking one, are now going to be in at least three locations, possible four, which is bound to damage co-ordination of service provision and access to services, especially by the elderly."

Mr Robb, challenged Mr Wilson to put the record straight on plans for the Newton Aycliffe Health Centre, saying,

"I believe this is a serious health problem, which requires a serious political response.

This is precisely why the Newton Aycliffe Health Centre and the library still have to put up with dilapidated conditions over three years after they were originally promised."

"Mr Wilson just doesn't get it, the people of Newton Aycliffe do not want to see vital health services broken up and spread over a 7.5. mile area, they want the new health centre and library they were promised. It is clear that yet again Labour is taking the people of this constituency for granted."