Delivering better healthcare is one of my key priorities as the Member of Parliament for Dover and Deal. Talking to residents in my regular MP surgeries and at community meetings, I know how important it is that high quality healthcare can be accessed locally.
This is why I have been working hard supporting local campaigns and holding regular meetings across the constituency to see what more can be done to deliver the best possible healthcare for our area.
Back in 2010, our local healthcare was in a bad way. Many of our local services had been decimated. In the last few years, there have been remarkable improvements at both Dover and Deal Hospitals. There has been a huge amount of Government investment into our local area healthcare – from £20 million for the new Buckland hospital to a £6 million state-of-the-art diagnostics hub to power us out of Covid backlogs.
Nationally, £8 billion of funding has been made available for the NHS and adult social care in 2024-25. Of course, there is so much to do as we recover from the pandemic health backlog. However, the numbers and investment levels are moving in the right direction.
It’s right that we continually seek to improve our healthcare services. That’s why I have been backing the campaign to bring blood tests back to Deal’s Victoria Hospital. From regular meetings with our Bloods Action Team, to pressing our case with the Chief Executives of Kent and Medway’s Integrated Care Board and Deal Hospital. I am determined to keep working hard for our local area to bring back vital blood tests locally. It is not right that people in Deal, Walmer, Sholden and other villages have to travel out of our area to access services that were once available on our doorstep.
I have also been having meetings with other Kent MPs to address some of the issues at the East Kent Hospitals Trust. Safer maternity support for expecting mothers is vital and I am determined to see continued improvements in our local services following the publication of the Kirkup Report. It is right that services across the county are taking up new recommendations so that the steady improvements which are already taking place can continue at pace. I have also been supporting local families who have been impacted by devastating baby losses.
My office is always there to help anyone who is having healthcare related issues. If you are having problems with GP access, finding an NHS dentist or seeing a specialist, my team and I will do all we can to help.
There are so many important elements that go into delivering better healthcare – from improving step-down social care support to making sure our GPs offer the best possible care and advice. Better healthcare matters to us all and I will continue making our community’s case locally and in Parliament.