The threat of legal action has forced a rethink on plans to axe a vital health service.
A man has forced the organisation responsible for managing health budgets in Cornwall to speak to patients before scrapping the service that has continued to save his life since a fateful day fives years ago when he ‘died’ 14 times.
Ian Wyness took up the fight with NHS Kernow, the clinical commissioning group which allocates government cash to the various health services in Cornwall, from hospitals to medication, after the organisation decided the get rid of its Telehealth service.
The Telehealth service allows the remote exchange of information between patients and doctors from patients’ own homes.
It works by monitoring vital signs, such as blood pressure, and transmitting the data via a telephone line or broadband to a Telehealth monitoring centre or healthcare professional where it can be monitored against parameters set by the patient’s clinician.
The service is used to assist in diagnosis and monitoring, typically in relation to long term conditions such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), chronic heart failure, diabetes and epilepsy.
Mr Wyness, who suffers from a chronic heart condition, started writing to NHS Kernow asking that it keep the vital service going.
When the CCG failed to listen he took the organisation to court and won a legal argument that closing its Telehealth services without consulting with members of the public was illegal.
The CCG has confirmed that it will continue to fund the Telehealth service until the decision on its future has been revisited.
It launched a public consultation to see what patients in Cornwall want to do on September 19.
Mr Wyness, a 55-year-old former RAF instructor from Davidstow, said: “Telehealth has been a godsend. Without it I wouldn’t be here today.
“I’m seriously ill with a serious heart condition, but I decided to fight for everyone because many patients who use the service who may have dementia or may be old are unable to take on that fight.
“I feel I have to keep fighting for it. If more patients knew they can ask for NHS Kernow’s decisions to be reviewed legally, they would do it to keep their services going. That’s the only you will stop all these cuts.”
There are more than 900 patients relying on Telehealth services in Cornwall every year.
Mr Wyness started using it after being brought back to life in 2012 after he medically died 14 times in one day.
“The doctors did not expect me to make it through the day. I died six times in my house and the paramedics had to bring me back six times before they could put me in the ambulance. I died twice more in the ambulance then again on the operating table.
“I went on to use the Telehealth services and it’s helped monitor my severe heart condition. It has been a vital part of my care package. I have been rushed to hospital previously when the service noted a drop-in my blood pressure.
“On several occasions the hospital staff told me I had arrived just in time. It has saved my life but NHS Kernow want to scrap it. But worse. They didn’t want to listen to their customers. That’s why I launched the legal challenge. They have to consult with people.”
The reprieve also means that all Telehealth staff that the CCG wanted to get rid off still have a job for now.
Mr Wyness added: “I reckon this is not the end of it. But I will fight on.”
Rowan Smith, lawyer at Leigh Day, which represented Mr Wyness, said: “We are glad that Kernow CCG has finally recognised that their original decision to decommission the Telehealth service was unlawful and we are very pleased that they have now agreed to resolve the issue by consulting with service users and retaking the decision.”
NHS Kernow chairman Dr Iain Chorlton, said: “The decision we make at the Governing Board meeting in December will be informed by the evidence we receive during the six-week consultation.
Article originally appeared on Cornwall Live
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