HAMPSHIRE PCT LEARNS FROM LIB DEM HEALTH SURVEY

12.00.00am GMT Tue 22nd Jan 2008

Results from thousands of responses to a health survey were yesterday presented to Hampshire's Primary Care Trust by local MP and Liberal Democrat Shadow Minister for Health, Sandra Gidley MP.

Thirty-three thousand households in the Romsey constituency received a copy of the survey from Sandra before Christmas. The PCT has since asked Mrs. Gidley to pass on the results to the Trust to help health bosses assess the standard of healthcare in the county.

Speaking after a meeting with PCT Chair Jonathan Montgomery, Sandra Gidley MP said:

"It's so important to get future health care priorities right, and the best way to do that is to listen to local people's concerns.

"I have tried to ensure that most households in the Romsey constituency received a copy of my survey, and I am very pleased with the huge mailbag that we have received in response. It proves that health is a top priority for local residents.

"My survey highlights that many Government driven reforms are simply not working for local residents. Worryingly, nearly 50% of people said that the local health services had either stayed the same or got worse in recent years.

Sandra, who is also co-Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Mental Health added:

"I also stress the urgent need for a new local strategy for mental health services, including the expansion of talking therapies as well as drugs for mental health care. Nearly all of us will know someone who has suffered from mental health problems, and yet this remains a Cinderella service in the NHS and there is a persistent stigma attached to mental illness that still needs to be overcome.

"Of course, we should all be proud of those working tirelessly within the NHS in Hampshire today. However, real improvements can be made. NHS Trusts need far more local freedom to deliver services - not centrally driven targets by Whitehall mandarins.

I now hope that the responses people have taken the time and trouble to provide will help shape a better local service for the future."

ENDS.