Please see a template below on the Liberal Democrat FOI story on cancelled children’s operations, as covered by the Guardian.
Please see a template below on the Liberal Democrat FOI story on cancelled children’s operations, as covered by the Guardian.
You can adapt this to your area using this data sheet.
Please note this template is for use In England only.
Some trusts did not respond to the FOI in time and so not all areas are covered in the data.
[INSERT FIGURE - COLUMN G] children’s operations in [AREA] cancelled over past five years
[INSERT FIGURE - COLUMN G] children’s operations have been cancelled at hospitals in [AREA] last year, many due to a shortage of staff and beds, shocking figures uncovered by the Liberal Democrats have revealed.
The data, obtained by the Liberal Democrats through Freedom of Information requests, shows that [INSERT FIGURE - COLUMN AG] children’s operations have been cancelled due to a lack of beds and [INSERT FIGURE - COLUMN AH] due to staff shortages since 2018. Another [INSERT FIGURE - COLUMN AI] were cancelled due to equipment problems, such as machines being faulty or not being available.
Some children at the local NHS trust were left waiting up to [INSERT FIGURE - AL] days for an operation, the data suggests.
[ADD IF THERE HAS BEEN AN INCREASE SINCE LAST YEAR]: [INSERT FIGURE - COLUMN F] children’s operations were cancelled in 2022, an increase of [INSERT PERCENTAGE - COLUMN H] compared to the year before.
The Liberal Democrats are urging the government to come up with a rescue plan to bring health services back from the brink. This would include bringing in a proper plan to tackle workforce shortages in the NHS, investing in newer equipment and increasing bed capacity at local hospitals.
Commenting, Liberal Democrat [INSERT SPOKESPERSON] said:
“Behind these shocking figures are countless children and parents in our community having to wait in pain and distress.
"Years of neglect by this government have led to chronic staff shortages and a lack of hospital beds, and now local families are paying the price.
“The Liberal Democrats are calling for a rescue plan now to bring local health services back from the brink. That must include increasing bed capacity and tackling staff shortages so people aren’t left waiting so long for the care they deserve”.
ENDS
Notes to Editor:
Full data broken down by local NHS trust is available in this spreadsheet.
The Liberal Democrats are demanding a rescue plan for the NHS and care. This would include:
Recruit an extra 8,000 GPs to deliver 65 million more appointments a year, taking pressure off hospitals and getting patients the urgent attention they need.
Boosting capital investment in the health service, including increasing the number of hospital beds and investing in newer equipment.
Introduce a Carer’s Minimum Wage for social care workers to stem the exodus of staff and ensure hospitals can discharge their patients safely and efficiently.
Ensure the Government brings forward their NHS workforce plan now, and fully fund pay rises for staff so that the NHS doesn’t have to stretch its budget even further.