A&E Winter Crisis

Having worked on the frontline of our NHS as a specialist A&E doctor, I am appalled by the Secretary of State’s suggestion that patients should self-diagnose. I have seen that the seriousness of a patient’s situation is not always immediately obvious and conditions can rapidly deteriorate without proper medical attention. In today’s debate social care funding in England, I told the Secretary of State for Health to take responsibility for the current crisis in the NHS, rather than pass the blame on to patients.

Beyond my experiences as an A&E doctor, I am a citizen of this country and a patient of the NHS. The NHS is one of our great national institutions and forms part of the essential fabric of our society. It is there for us all when we need it most and must be defended. There have been a number of debates in Parliament around social care, STPs and NHS funding; I have tried to speak in as many of them as possible. I feel the Government must be made aware of what is truly happening on the frontline.