News | Health Flu jab fear


MORE than 1,000 medical staff at the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells Trust have not had a flu jab. Public Health England says


about 1,400 of 4,600 staff have not had the vaccination. The Society for Acute Medicine


says it is concerning how few have been immunised, although the trust's uptake was a little higher than the national average. Medical staff are encouraged to


have the jab and NHS trusts are financially rewarded for hitting 80% targets.


School plans


THE CCG is recommending its primary care team works more closely with GP practices to in- crease school provision for under 18s.


One idea is to arrange drop-in sessions with paramedics. Engagement with schools and


public health authorities is also recommended “to discourage un- necessary recommendations for A&E attendances”.


Clinic review


VASCULAR services (including aortic aneurisms) in Medway and east Kent are being reviewed. The move is necessary due to a shortage of specialist consultants at Medway Hospital. There is a plan for a temporary inpatient hub at Kent and Canter- bury Hospital. Non-arterial care will also be delivered at Medway Maritime Hospital to ensure, where possible, patients receive care close to home.


Head of CCG


SENIOR officer of the new Kent and Medway Clinical Commis- sioning Group when it is formed in April from the existing eight Kent CCGs will be Wilf Williams, currently Director of National Health and Human Services prac- tice KPMG in Australia. He has previously held two


chief executive NHS roles in Can- terbury.


Acute unit


THE new Acute Assessment Unit at Maidstone Hospital now nears completion and should open soon. This will enable further assess-


ment and monitoring of patients with urgent conditions who have been referred by a GP or the emergency department.


22 Malling March 2020


downsmail.co.uk


GP shortage ‘driving patients to use A&E’


INCREASING problems and pressures facing NHS services in Maidstone are evident in reports before the budget-holding NHS West Kent Clinical Commissioning Group.


Most worrying for patients is the


lack of GPs, with Maidstone now suffering among the most serious shortages in the UK. Readers increasingly express concerns to the Downs Mail about difficulties making appointments at GP practices. Some are forced to join early- morning queues in winter weather to access surgeries and book ap- pointments. The CCG, which has identified


the need for an additional surgery in central Maidstone due to rapid population growth, has taken var- ious steps to reduce pressure on GPs, including building up profes- sional help in surgeries. The problem is driving more pa-


tients directly to hospital A&E, and it is revealed that these depart- ments are now facing a doctor shortage in their own internal GP- streaming services. This service is required to have


at least one GP on duty at both hos- pitals. A large number of shifts are


covered by middle-grade doctors. The CCG reports emergency at- tendances to Maidstone A&E last November totalled 6,456, up 12% on 2019. It believes challenged pa- tients see this as “the faster alter- native”.


Hospital bed occupancy in


November was 95.3% at Maid- stone and 95.7% at Tunbridge Wells against the NHS-recom- mended 85%. Emergency department perfor-


mance has suffered and has been below plan for four months. But it is still in the top 25% trusts nation- ally, and performs significantly better than most. The CCG is organising quality assurance visits “as a matter of ur- gency to investigate concerns” and says it will work with the hospital trust to provide an efficient service. l AMBULANCES: The CCG also reports continuing problems with ambulances still missing national targets for reaching patients. One cause is ambulance handover de-


lays when patients are taken to hospital, with some topping 60 minutes due to pressures in hospi- tal. Improvements are being made and the CCG is monitoring an ac- tion plan. l STROKE SERVICES: Concerns over delivery of best stroke practice at Maidstone Hospital have grown. Due to shortages on the consul- tants’ rota, not all patients are seen quickly enough and “compliance seems to be on a downward trend”. A new action plan is in place. Dr Bob Bowes, CCG chairman,


told the Downs Mail: “NHS ser- vices across the country are under increasing pressure due to rising demand, partly because of our age- ing population with people living with conditions such as diabetes, COPD and heart disease. More live with dementia. “We work closely with local


providers to ensure services meet changing needs and high quality care.”


Cash for youth mental health


A MENTAL health charity has been given a donation to help deliver support and guidance for young people at risk of turning to criminal- ity.


The new programme at Maid-


stone and Mid-Kent Mind aims to tackle the relationships between gang affiliation, knife crime and poor mental health. Over the course of a five-week pro-


gramme, funded by the Office of the Kent Police Crime Commissioner and the Home Office, participants will look at how to better cope with and process feelings of anger. The scheme has been designed


with young people who are of sec- ondary school age. The course has been rolled out


within a number of Kent schools, but MMK Mind are now looking at open- ing these courses up to the wider public. Julie Blackmore, CEO, said: “Maid-


stone and Mid-Kent Mind has devel- oped a wealth of youth support


CEO Julie Blackmore (centre) with members of the Mind youth team


programmes which all tackle differ- ent problem areas. “The time has come, we feel, to


broaden the impact of these pro- grammes and that is where working with partners like Youth Resilience UK comes in, enabling us to tackle specific areas of need within the local community. “We’ve already seen a great re- sponse for this programme within


schools, so we are eager to see how taking the project to Open Access may benefit even more young peo- ple.”


Two free five-week courses are


open to young people in the Maid- stone area. Both courses will begin on the February 25. For more details, visit www.maid- stonemind.org/mind-knife-knife- crime-course-kent.


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