| MP DEEPLY CONCERNED OVER OUT OF HOURS CHANGES |
| Wednesday, 10 January 2007 | |
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Following the resignation on protest of both Medical Directors of the Southport and Formby Out of Hours Service local MP John Pugh is demanding an urgent meeting with the new heads of Sefton PCT. The MP claims the doctors resigned because of serious concerns about patient safety due to a new system of handling calls through the privately owned company UC (Urgent Care 24). The MP has been told it is due to 'severe delays' and 'a series of critical incidents' particularly over key holiday periods. "I am deeply concerned as will be all residents. When doctors claim a system is 'unfit and dangerous' it's time to get some straight answers. I have been told that the PCT are making efforts to address the shortcomings and complaints UC24's call handling is generating but one suspects that patient safety is not the only consideration; financial savings is also an issue for them. Currently charges and concerns about risks to patient safety put forward by UC24s former Director of IT, Mr Mc Nally, are still being investigated. "The fact is that there are sufficient risk factors for the PCT to take a step back and consider whether the current service provided by UC24 is good enough for the people it currently serves in Liverpool without exporting it to Southport against a background of serious medical concern." |