18 July 2012
Following last week’s private members’ debate in Westminster Hall,
Andy Slaughter, Labour MP for Hammersmith, has made a passionate speech in the
House of Commons urging the Secretary of State for Health to meet clinicians
from Royal Brompton to "at least hear what they have to say" about the impact of
the closure of their children’s heart unit.
In the adjournment debate on Tuesday
17 July, Mr Slaughter reiterated his concerns about the Joint Committee of
Primary Care Trust’s (JCPCT) “extraordinary
decision to end children’s heart surgery and intensive care at one of the best
performing and largest centres in England: Royal Brompton hospital
…”
“For the sake of the
thousands of children whose care will be damaged by the decision of Sir Neil
McKay’s committee,” Mr Slaughter continued, “for the sake of the research
programmes that will be destroyed, and the sake of common sense, I hope that the
Minister of State will realise that the time has come for him to meet clinicians
from the Royal Brompton and at least hear what they have to say. Perhaps he will
be able to persuade them that destroying NHS services and research programmes
that are viewed by international peers as among the best in the world is a good
idea. I wish him luck in doing so.”
The
decision to end children’s heart surgery at Royal Brompton follows a review
known as “Safe and Sustainble” into the future of children’s cardiac surgery
services across England. The review recommended back
in February 2011 that the numbers of centres in London should be reduced from
three to two, but the decision was not announced formally until 4 July this year. Royal Brompton was not included as a London centre despite its
size, excellent outcomes and international reputation for treating both children
and adults with congenital cardiac disease.
Mr
Slaughter said: “It was quite a
surprise for the doctors and other staff at Royal Brompton to find out last year
that they were earmarked for closure. The national review panel that made the
recommendation, in February 2011, had previously specified that for children’s
heart surgery centres to be viable they must have four surgeons each doing at
least 100 operations every year, and they must offer round-the-clock
care.
“Royal Brompton has
four surgeons, each undertaking more than 100 operations every year and it
offers round-the-clock care. It also has a safety and outcome record of which
any centre would be proud. Rates of patient satisfaction at the hospital are
exceptionally high.”
He continued: “I must
stress, because it is of utmost importance, that there was never any suggestion
that Royal Brompton’s clinical services for children are anything other than
first rate…. Removing children’s surgery and intensive care from Royal Brompton
will have devastating consequences, and not just for the young patients who
value the hospital’s cardiac care so highly. Losing its children’s intensive
care unit will destroy Royal Brompton’s world-class paediatric respiratory
service, which specialises in the treatment of children with cystic fibrosis,
severe asthma and a number of severe and complex respiratory conditions. Without
the back-up of intensive care and on-site anaesthesia, doctors will not be able
to undertake the more complex specialist treatments they do now, because they
will consider it unsafe to do so.”
Mr
Slaughter went on to quote two international experts who have raised their
concerns with the chair of the JCPCT, Sir Neil MacKay, about the negative knock-on impacts on both respiratory treatments and respiratory research, for
which the hospital is renowned throughout the world.
Making reference to further concerns raised by charities Asthma UK, the Cystic
Fibrosis Trust, the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign, and the Primary Ciliary
Dyskinesia Family Support Group he quoted from a letter they sent to the JCPCT
in November 2011:“We have explicitly
mentioned respiratory research because it is an issue of fundamental importance
to each of our charities because of the excellence of the Royal Brompton’s
paediatric respiratory research and clinical trials programmes and the
importance of that work for improving patient outcomes in the
future.”
