Conservatives Call for the Return of Children's A&E to Southport and Further Investment in Adult A&E Services

SOUTHPORT Conservatives are calling on the Town's new MP, Patrick Hurley, to join with their long standing campaign to bring Children's A&E back to Southport Hospital and see significant capital investment in Adult A&E services in Southport.

Mike Prendergast, Conservative Group Leader on Sefton Council and Parliamentary Spokesperson for Southport Conservatives, said:- "Right now the local NHS Trust are carrying out a survey on the future of NHS services in our Town. This will be followed by a draft proposal and further consultation next year. Given past experiences, local people will be concerned that this could lead to more services being taken away from Southport Hospital. I would urge all local residents to complete the survey and make your views known. We need as many people as possible to make it clear that we need to see Children's A&E returned to Southport Hospital and want to see capital investment with improved adult services too. Conservatives in Southport have long called for the return of Children's A&E Services to Southport. Our Town's former MP, Damien Moore, worked very hard, over many years for this service to return, as well as delivering investment in Adult A&E Services, and all Conservatives in Southport want to see this outcome. Over 90,000 people live in Southport and it is imperative that we have these services in Southport. It's not right that families have to travel to Ormskirk and that between midnight and 8 am the nearest children's service is 45 minutes drive away in Liverpool. Southport's families and the thousands of visitors to our town, every week, deserve to have access to expert children's emergency services in our Town. During the last Labour government we lost Children's A&E, so I hope that the current Labour government listens to our calls for Children's A&E to be returned and integrated with adult emergency and urgent care provision. Families with children in our town don't want to be travelling many miles to attend A&E and with many elderly residents in Southport too, the distances involved are too great for any kind of reduction in Adult A&E Services. As someone who has lived in Southport for 25 years and with two young children, I know how important it is to parents that we see Children's A&E back in Southport. I've written to the Secretary of State for Health to ask that he confirms Southport will see the return of Children's A&E Services to Southport. I welcome the news that our town's current Labour MP supports the Conservative campaign to reinstate Children's A&E in Southport and hopefully families across Southport can benefit from the work done before he arrived in our town. The petition we ran in support of this campaign attracted thousands of signature from local people. While many people are concerned what the outcome of the consultation might be, I am hopeful that the long campaign by Conservatives in Southport to deliver improved NHS services for our residents and their families in our town will bear fruit."

Mersey and West Lancashire NHS Trust sees nearly 300 patients diagnosed with tooth decay amid Dentist appointment troubles

AS getting a Dentist appointment seemingly becomes harder and harder, Mersey and West Lancashire Hospitals have diagnosed hundreds of patients with dental issues.

Nearly 300 patients have been diagnosed with issues attributed to tooth decay in Mersey and West Lancashire Hospitals in the past 3 years, a new investigation has revealed.

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust serves a population of over 600,000, delivering care from a range of locations, including:- Hospitals and community locations.

Figures obtained by Public Interest Lawyers show that 2,107 patients had a diagnosis of tooth decay during their spell at these Hospitals since 2021.

Those suffering from dental problems should be treated at their local Dentist with regular appointments to avoid severe situations, yet with many Dentists not taking on new patients, people are turning up to A&E in their tens of thousands.

According to the BBC and the British Dental Association (BDA), 90% of Dentists across the UK are not taking on new NHS adult patients, and many refuse to see a child unless a parent is signed up as a private patient.

In 2021/22, the number of patients diagnosed with tooth decay in Mersey and West Lancashire Hospitals stood at 119.

A year later, this number decreased to 86, which is the lowest number of patients diagnosed with tooth decay over the 3 year period.

The past year has seen a rise in patients diagnosed with tooth decay and related issues, standing at 88.

Tooth decay is the biggest primary cause of NHS Hospital admissions for children in England aged between:- 5 and 17, as:- 40% of children no longer have access to regular dental appointments.

Between April 2022 and May 2023, 30,000 children and more than 70,000 adults in England were admitted to A&E with tooth decay.

Many places in the UK are now considered to be �dental deserts,' where 100% of Dentists are not taking on new patients.

Public Interest Lawyers also obtained the figures on how many patients diagnosed with tooth decay, or dental issues were aged between 5 and 17.

In 2021/22, there were 14 patients aged:- 5 to 17 before this figure rose to 17 a year later.

The number of under 18 patients then decreased in:- 2023/24, with the total being 15.

Labour's analysis of patient survey data suggests that:- 4.75 million people across England were denied an appointment with an NHS Dentist in the past 2 years.

Figures show millions of people were either told no appointments were available or that the practice they contacted was not taking on new patients.

Public Interest Lawyers offers free advice and support to anyone who has suffered harm due to dental negligence.