Even more relevant today, Cornish campaigner, Kevin Bennetts’ letter to Cornwall council re. its disastrous strategy for (failing) healthcare provision, whilst it spends millions on pushing hard to further increase Cornwall’s rapidly expanding population (none through natural births vs deaths).
As expected, no response was ever made to these legitimate concerns re. Treliske and Cornish health care, in 2018.
This clearly suggests that this arrogant councillor (Kaczmarek) is long past his sell by date.
Devolved HEALTHCARE - an open letter to councillor Mark KACZMAREK:
Dear Councillor Kaczmarek,
As my ward councillor, are you worried about health provision in Cornwall?
Are you concerned about moving NHS services over the Tamar to England?
Are you aware of the persistent underfunding of Cornwall's NHS?
Are you aware that neighbouring Devon enjoys the benefits of district general hospitals in Barnstaple, Exeter, Torbay and Plymouth?
Yet there is no mention of another district general hospital in Cornwall, to cope with the fallout from development policies that you were instrumental in.
Indeed there are moves afoot to close small local hospitals; those very hospitals which could play a major role in relieving the bed blocking crisis that is an ongoing contributory factor in the escalating crisis that is currently engulfing Treliske.
We Cornish, like everyone else, have paid into the system for years, and yet we've been totally abandoned; for example, a friend who should be in Treliske has been told they will probably make his infection worse if he is admitted at present, due to the (unacceptable) risk of further hospital-acquired infection.
Treliske has been rated POOR for years by CQC, and is now rated INADEQUATE and placed in special measures due to the chronic and ongoing underfunding of Cornwall's NHS.
According to a paper in Cornish Studies, the per-capita spend on health in Cornwall is a fraction of that spent in London, and this has long been the case.
We pay our taxes, so why are we being short-changed to such an obvious degree? (As we are also in education, even compared to Devon).
If Treliske had had the money recently spent on refurbishing Derriford's entrance alone, it would not be turning patients away now.
Health is now the responsibility of Cornwall Council.
As my Cornwall councillor, I want to know when:
1 - Treliske will get the proper funding it urgently needs, so that people leave healthier than when they enter.
2- Cornwall will get a second general hospital - Devon has four general hospitals, whilst Cornwall now has one.
3- More treatments will be done in Cornwall (esp. cancer and heart procedures) to stop us from having to leave our home for treatment, or travel hundreds of miles to visit sick relatives.
As the ‘’Father’’ of the Langarth Farm planning fiasco involving the ludicrous ‘’FREE STADIUM SCAM’’, which you and planner Mason fell for, hook, line and sinker, and being an evidently enthusiastic supporter of the mass destruction of Cornwall via hyper-development, I put it to you in the strongest possible terms that your enthusiasm for what is currently taking place is instrumental in the disastrous state of affairs unfolding at Treliske.
This is actually costing Cornish lives due to the inadequate backup given to the magnificent NHS frontline staff, in the face of an artificially exploding population.
You were clearly warned in 2012 that your vain ill-thought through follies would return to haunt you at some future time, so welcome to 2018 councillor when you are going to be increasingly called upon to account for your actions and the unfolding malign consequences they are unleashing upon hard pressed Cornish people.
Yours faithfully,
Kevin Bennetts