The decision to implement three hyper-acute stroke units across the region, closing current acute services at hospitals including Margate’s QEQM, will not be referred back to the government by Kent County Councillors.
The nearest unit to Thanet will be at Ashford’s William Harvey Hospital. Units at Darent Valley and Maidstone are due to go live in March 2020 followed by WHH in spring 2021.
A meeting (May 21) of the county council health overview and scrutiny committee was expected to make the vote following an update on the plans from the Kent and Medway NHS.
Speeches urging the decision be refered back were made by Thanet councillors Ros Binks, Lesley Game and Karen Constantine.
But a motion was first put forward proposing to approve the stroke review decision and this was passed by 7 votes to 6. Two committee members were absent from the meeting.
That meant a vote on referring back to the Secretary of State for Health could not then be taken.
Health campaigners are challenging both the number of stroke units NHS bosses are proposing and their location. Save Our NHS in Kent (SONIK) say present plans are totally unsatisfactory and they want four hyper acute stroke units at good locations across the county including in Thanet.
Both SONIK and Thanet Stroke Campaign, headed by county councillor Karen Constantine, have launched legal action in the High Court to challenge how the decision was made.
SONIK say it will be the lead on the Judicial Review.
Kent and Medway stroke consultants say larger, specialist units in other parts of the country have been shown to improve outcomes for people who have had a stroke.
Thanet district councillor and SONIK campaigner Helen Whitehead said: “”I am glad that six representatives saw how badly certain areas including Thanet stand to be affected by these plans, but thoroughly disappointed in the way this motion was presented, and in the overall decision of the HOSC to disadvantage those in areas of high need.
“SONIK will continue to fight this decision through the judicial review, and I and SONiK will continue to hold our democratic procedures to account throughout this process.”
Cllr Constantine, who was one of the six to vote against the backing of the hyper-acute unit proposal, said she was “extremely dissatisfied and disappointed with the decision.”
She added: “After all this months of battling, rising awareness, fighting, lobbying, organising public meetings, street stalls, petitions and countless meetings our countless hours of effort have come to nought.
“Residents of Thanet have been done a very great disservice today. QEQM should have been properly considered as a location for a HASU. We were told that there weren’t enough stroke cases in Thanet to meet the ‘competency threshold’. Information that I have pushed for and have received recently scotches this.”
The figures Cllr Constantine received show Thanet has an average of 260 stroke cases per year compared with 135 in Herne Bay and 82 for Canterbury and the villages.
A statement from the stroke review team says: “We believe we carried out a legal, rational, fair and lawful process. The decision to establish three hyper acute stroke units in Kent and Medway is supported by local, regional and national specialists, including the four hospital trusts and the senior stroke consultants in Kent and Medway. However, we will of course comply with any finding of the court.”
This article originally appeared on The Isle of Thanet News
The Institute cannot confirm the accuracy of this story or confirm that it presents a balanced view. If you feel this is inaccurate, we would welcome your perspective and evidence that this is the case.
