So easy to speak when you don’t live here!

Date published: 19/01/2008

Hospital campaigner and Infirmary employee for over 30 years, Councillor Jean Ashworth has hit out at a paediatrician who has spoken out in favour of changes to maternity that will result in a loss of services at Rochdale Infirmary.

Councillor Ashworth says: "Dr Peter Powell speaks for the people of Manchester not for the children or mums to be in Rochdale or Fairfield!

"He states that Oldham and Manchester will be host to our lost services and claims that local families with the sickest babies will have help much closer to hand - what utter rubbish.

"Our five excellent paediatrician’s in Rochdale have stabilised and saved many a child’s live before they are moved to a more specialised unit, and without that immediate and quick intervention most of those little lives would have been lost.

"He states that there will be an extra eight children’s nurses in the community and they are going to 'keep children out of hospital'. So we in Rochdale are going to lose 24 inpatient children’s beds seven days a week and eight more community nurses are going to cope and keep them at home safe and sound not needing emergency care?  Utter rubbish!

"Every week our paediatricians are phoning round all areas and struggling for beds to accommodate our really poorly babies and children, it is sometimes up to eight hours before an intensive care bed can be found. Again it is utter rubbish to say moving our children’s inpatient care to North Manchester really is going to 'Make it better'.

"What about Fairfield’s poorly babies and children?

"It would be nice if Dr Peter Powell had actually sat down and spoke to the paediatricians in Rochdale and Fairfield and listened to their realistic views on these ridiculous proposals, then maybe he would have had a different view on how these proposals really are going to affect Rochdale and Fairfield

"I have over the past 30 years seen our consultant paediatricians, Dr Buston, Dr Adler and Dr Stack provide the most excellent care along with the present paediatricians, Dr Smith, Dr Aryiawansa, Dr Mir, Dr Oluwole, and Dr Rifkin and save many a child’s life.

"They have the necessary expertise to deal with an emergency situation and it is the likes of these silly proposals that are going to cost lives because these beds will never be available, and neither will the staff ever be able to cope!

"So sorry Dr Peter Powell, the staff of Rochdale and Fairfield paediatrics and maternity really do not share your enthusiasm for our future health and well being."