The £21million A&E upgrade at Croydon University Hospital is proof that Tory NHS policies work, claims Conservative candidate Gavin Barwell.
Plans were approved in late March by the NHS to redevelop the A&E, two months after the hospital was the first in London to declare a ‘major internal incident’.
Gavin Barwell, Croydon Central MP since 2010 and the current Conservative candidate in the marginal seat, feels the decision made by the NHS is justification for his achievements.
Mr Barwell said: “I’m delighted – It’s something I’ve worked really hard for and I think it’s a good illustration of the difference a good local MP can make.
“Croydon’s population is growing very quickly, and the old A&E isn’t big enough.
“It’s not a great environment for patients to be treated.
“The Labour campaign was trying to focus on how we were going to downgrade the local hospital, but this announcement proves quite the opposite – this is a big step.
“This isn’t about the immediate problems, it’s about the long-term population growth in Croydon and about making sure we have a facility that can cope with those numbers and provides a modern appropriate setting for care to be provided.”
The current A&E department, built in the 1980s, treats more than 120,000 patients per year – double the number it was designed to cater for.
The changes will see the facility grow in size by one third, and will provide sub-waiting areas for patients along with doors on all ‘major’ cubicles as opposed to curtains.
Mr Barwell acknowledged the need to keep reinvesting, and pinpointed the lack of GPs and patient waiting times as a big focus – something which his Labour opponent Sarah Jones is also campaigning on.
Mrs Jones welcomed the news of the planned improvements but criticised the current setup for its inefficient and outdated methods.
She said: “It’s not big enough but also it’s not designed in anywhere near the way modern hospital A&Es are designed.
“You now have different waiting areas for different types of people and you move through the system in a much easier way.
“At the moment the A&E has one waiting area where everybody is just plonked.
“It really needed re-doing a long time ago so it’s great we’re getting the money – what we need now isn’t just the bricks and mortar but we need the people.”
Work on the new A&E is expected to begin this year, and is scheduled for completion in spring 2017.
Image courtesy of BBC parliament via YouTube, with thanks
