Nicola Grant has said that she has been contacted by a number of residents and Health Service users, asking her to seek more answers from the Southern Health Trust about the strategic direction of the Trust and the future of Daisy Hill Hospital, a much-needed health facility for the Newry Armagh community.

Nicola went on to say that “one resignation was not going to reverse the dire situation the service is in at minute and has been in for some considerable time. Those Non-Executive and Executive Directors who hold the responsibility for the strategic direction and planning of the Health and social care needs of the community they are there to serve. now need to step up, and speak up. They should know that the plans they have agreed to will only make a bad situation worse and cannot deliver the health care needed to deal with the many complex health problems the people of Newry Armagh and other areas within the Southern Trust catchment area suffer from.”

“They know the levels of poverty and health inequalities that already exist, they know the existing hospitals cannot cope with the throughput of patients needing treatment. They know all of this yet remain silent and implement cutbacks and closures. The people of the Southern Health and social care Trust deserve better leadership than this. It is now time to change direction, it is now time for the Trust board to speak truth to power, to tackle the vested interests inside and outside of the Health Service, and to start the process of delivering good clinical outcomes for our citizens.”

“It’s now time to rebuild our National Health Service, it’s now time to halt the privatisation and fragmentation of our healthcare systems. The people of Newry and Armagh deserve nothing less.”