There is no doubt that the victory over the U-turns of the Labour Secretary of State for Health is very largely the result of our non-party campaign to Defend and save the Accident and Emergency, Maternity, Trauma and Paediatric Services at the Whittington Hospital, and to oppose privatisation and cuts in any other NHS hospital.

Our role was crucial for the following reasons: it was a united non-party campaign of residents, hospital workers and other trade unionists – Our Hospital, Your Jobs – and representation from other local campaigns and political parties.

Almost everyone we spoke to supported our campaign. We got at least 16,000 signatures through leafleting and talking to thousands of local people. The popularity of this campaign made it a hot election issue, where all mainstream political parties wanted to be involved – some more directly involved with us than others. The local press supported the campaign and the Islington Tribune, in particular, played a huge role in helping us to build for our march.

We organised a stunning march on 27th February, where 5,000 people demonstrated their opposition. This was the biggest local march for decades, and probably the biggest ever march for a hospital. This was also the major turning point as it got massive media coverage. We organised a public meeting to launch our forthcoming day of action and rally, on Thursday 29th April, one week before the general election. Having asked several leaders of political parties and their spokespeople to speak, only Andrew Lansley, Tory Shadow Health Minister accepted the invitation.

At this point the Conservatives, Greens and Liberal Democrats had said that they wanted to scrap the review. Emily Thornberry is in a marginal seat. She has supported the campaign and been pressurising Andy Burnham, Labour Health Secretary, who had previously supported the PCT review. After Andrew Lansley accepted our invitation, Andy Burnham told Emily Thornberry on Tuesday 27th April that he had changed his mind, that he did not wish the A and E to close (Since then Shirley has received (on 29th April) an email from Mike O’Brien who claims that he too supports the A and E, and that the papers were only part of a discussion not proposals (a term used by Rachel Tyndall, chief Exec of the north Central London PCT).

We won because we established a mass campaign, one that was initiated by Jeremy Corbyn in Islington and later by Lynne Featherstone, in Hornsey and Wood Green, which also included hospital workers. We won because we timed it right during the election period. We won because we are cross-party, we got the right political and people. We won because we worked our guts out, we talked to loads and loads of people, had a great website, Facebook and email list and visual identity.

But this is not the end. We hope this victory isn’t an electoral gimmick. Will they stick to their promises? Who will win the election will determine what happens and what is cut next? In health terms, the cuts have already happened to the Cinderella of the Health Service, mental health.

We are considering spearheading a London-wide campaign. What’s next: On Monday 10th May we will be holding a public meeting to decide where we go, what we do next. We might be thinking about leading a London-wide campaign. Please join us at the Whittington Community Centre, Yerbury Road, N19 at 7.00 pm

Shirley Franklin
Chair of the Defend the Whittington Hospital Coalition

Addendum from Dave Plummer:

With perfectly bad timing my PC was struck by a virus over the weekend, hence the lack of updates and emails etc. Sorry about that. I’ve sorted it out now and will be updating the site over the next few days with links to press articles, TV coverage etc.

We had a good couple of hours with the stall outside the Nag’s Head, Holloway on Saturday morning, collecting more signatures, distributing flyers and spreading the word about the Day of Action.  We’ve now got well over ten thousand petition signatures on paper and over 1500 online.

Day Of Action, 29th April

Things are coming along really well for the Day of Action with several different groups and individuals organising events for the day. Hopefully the campaign to save our A&E will be visible in offices, shops and on the streets right across north London. If you have, or need, any ideas for activities please contact us at defendwhittington@googlemail.com. Let us know if you’ve planned something so we can arrange some coverage.

There are more details about the day here and we’ve published a flyer for the day here.

Press Coverage

There’s been a lot of coverage of the meeting with Rachel Tyndall on Monday 29th.

I need to apologise to the Haringey Indepenedent. They have provided a lot of coverage but unfortunately slipped under my radar and haven’t appeared on the site. Sorry.

Hornsey Journal, 03/04/2010: Whittington Hospital: tough choices to be made, says health boss

Islington Tribune, 02/04/2010: Woman who has Whittington A&E fate in her hands

Haringey Independent, 29/03/2010: Senior doctors oppose Whittington Hospital A&E closure

Video

Another excellent video about the march and rally.

The filmmakers who volunteered their time to make the film were:

• Justine Gordon-Smith
• Chris Hall
• Grave Livingstone
• Maggie Pallat.

Please let us know what you can do. We have posters and badges available so please let us know if you need some.

The focal point of the day will be a rally outside the Whittington from 12.00 until 14.00.  This is an opportunity to remind North Central London NHS that this is our hospital, not theirs, and to show our support for the workers and patients of the Whittington.

You can see a list of the events planned so far, and confirmed speakers for the rally, here: http://dwhc.org.uk/doa/

Please come along if you can.

The BBC have footage of Lynne Featherstone’s Westminster Hall debate, ‘London Hospitals’, from 17th March 2010 (a transcription from TheyWorkForYou was posted here the other day.). It includes contributions from Jeremy Corbyn, Health Minister Mike O’Brien and MPs from around London. At 1hr 30mins there’s quite a lot to get through but it’s well worth a watch if you have the time.

It’s available on the BBC site here.

Please remember to get along to tomorrow’s meeting if you can, 19.00 at the Whittington Park Community Centre. There are more details here.

Ham & High:

With the future of the Whittington Hospital at stake medics have contacted the Ham&High this week to speak out against the plans to close the A&E department.

Staff at the Archway hospital have been reluctant to speak out fearing their jobs may be on the line but have contacted the Ham&High this week on condition of anonymity.

The Ham&High also understands the staff are mobilising into a unified force and will soon appoint a spokesman who speak out on their behalf.

Read more here:  Whittington staff speak out about A&E closure

And there’s another great piece by Tom Foot in the Camden New Journal:

YOUR hospital needs you!

Patients who owe their lives to the Whittington have urged New Journal readers to stand up and be counted at a day of protest against plans to axe the Highgate ­hospital’s accident and emergency department.
Police are expecting a massive turnout on Saturday and have already ordered the ­closure of Holloway Road northbound from Highbury Corner up to the Whittington.

Tens of thousands of families will be affected by the proposals and the threat has outraged potential patients, many who have not campaigned before but know their lives may one day depend on the A&E remaining open.

Just ask identical twins Luke and Josh Ames Blackaby, from Highgate, who were diagnosed with chronic infantile asthma at birth. Over three years, they were repeatedly rushed through the doors of the Whittington’s casualty – often in the middle of night. Now 15, they have overcome their respiratory illness and developed into a pair of “top end” athletes – one plays county-level rugby and the other is a cross-country runner for Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers Athletics Club.

Read more here: Former patients back Whittington Hospital campaign as thousands get ready for protest march

Preparations for Saturday are rocking along. We’ve a great collection of speakers lined up and Joint-Secretary Shirley Franklin’s home is currently being used as a placard making factory.

We could still do with more stewards so, if you fancy helping out on the day please drop us a line at defendwhittington@googlemail.com. Stewards will be assembling at Highbury Fields at 11.15. on Saturday morning.

Whether or not you’re stewarding  please do your best to get along to the march and rally: it promises to be a  memorable day.

FEAR and uncertainty over the future of Whittington Hospital could spark a mass exodus of specialist staff, union leaders have warned.

Unison’s national head of health, Karen Jennings, said proposals to close down the Whittington’s accident and emergency department had left a dark cloud over the Highgate hospital.

She said A&E staff were “afraid” and “intimidated” and that hundreds of jobs will be axed if the casualty section is closed.

Ms Jennings said: “The concern is that medical teams, consultants and surgeons are already looking for jobs elsewhere.

“They fear their future will be short-lived. I have spoken to staff and they are afraid and intimidated. They have told me they are frightened to speak out. Hundreds of jobs will go if this goes through.”

Documents released last week revealed how the Whittington is under real threat of being designated as a “local hospital” – rather than its current “general” status – without key departments such as an A&E or a maternity unit.

Ms Jennings said the job cuts would be “much worse” than at the Royal Free Hospital where 180 posts are being “disestablished”, as revealed in the New Journal a fortnight ago.

Read the rest of the article here.

They’ve also put together a video for Casualty (the Whittington song):

Lynne Featherstone (MP for Hornsey and Wood Green) is holding a public meeting on Thursday the 4th March from 8 pm, Greig City Academy, Hornsey, N8 7NU. Rachel Tyndall will be attending and it will be interesting to see if things have changed since the Archway meeting a few weeks back. There’s more information about the meeting on Lynn’s blog.

Please remember to  join our Facebook group, sign up for the march and rally on 27th February, sign the petition, follow us on Twitter and spread the word.

Click here for the song: Whittington Song.

The Whittington Song, by Dave Plummer and Andria Britton.

Don’t make a casualty of our A&E,
Don’t try to fit us all in to the Royal Free,
Not saying nothing’s wrong with the Homerton,
But we need an A&E at the Whittington.

Don’t want the UCH when my leg, it breaks,
‘Coz getting there from Archway is a real headache,
If I break my arm I can’t go to Chase Farm,
Closing the Whittington will only do more harm.

You say the NHS is safely in your hands,
But the Foundations seem to be on shifting sands,
Funding ID Cards and Trident missiles is fine,
While our healthcare plummets headlong into steep decline.

Don’t make a casualty of our A&E,
Don’t try to fit us all in to the Royal Free,
Not saying nothing’s wrong with the Homerton,
But we need an A&E at the Whittington.

What would Bevan say if he were here today,
We’re trashing his great plan, throwing it all away,
While mothers with prams are stuck in traffic jams,
All because the NHS has a business plan.

When we need urgent care we hoped that you’d be there,
But you closed at eight o’clock: it’s gone eleven out here,
It’s an emergency. That’s the point you see,
Travelling extra miles could be the death of me.

Don’t make a casualty of our A&E,
Don’t try to fit us all in to the Royal Free,
Not saying nothing’s wrong with the Homerton,
But we need an A&E at the Whittington.

Our public health is envied by the world,
We’ve got something great, it shouldn’t be disturbed,
Forget about targets and action plans,
The health of a nation is in their hands.

Please don’t sell health off to the pigs at the trough,
Making money out of every rash, outbreak and cough,
Don’t go for money men, it’s our lives in the end,
Begone the shareholders and their dividends.

Don’t make a casualty of our A&E,
Don’t try to fit us all in to the Royal Free,
Not saying nothing’s wrong with the Homerton,
But we need an A&E at the Whittington.

Don’t make a casualty of our A&E,
Don’t try to fit us all in to the Royal Free,
Not saying nothing’s wrong with the Homerton,
But we need an A&E at the Whittington.

Deliberately not copyrighted: spread it around a bit!

The day of the demo looms closer so most of our activity is focusing on making it as much of a spectacle as possible.

Please note the *new route *- Assemble at *Highbury Corner at 12*, not Highbury Fields – and it will go to the front of the hospital in Magdala Avenue. Islington Tribune have hired a bus that will go ahead of the march – regs, I’m afraid.

*Mass leafleting* at Holloway Road, by Morrisons entrance *11.30 on Saturday 20th *February.

Please leaflet wherever you can and also use the petitions in hard copy and on line. You can use this leaflet for yours and others’ windows, in addition to the fab info and posters in last week’s Islington Tribune. Look forward to seeing you at the above events – especially the demonstration!

Shirley Franklin,

Joint Chair of Defend the Whittington Hospital Coalition