Urgent calls to improve NHS healthcare facilities in Sittingbourne to prevent avoidable deaths

Poor and disjointed access to medical care is causing people in one part of Kent to die prematurely.

That’s the gloomy image being depicted of a town by one councillor who says residents are facing “a complete car crash” in healthcare treatment with some “hopelessly behind the curve”.

People are being urged to voice their concerns as part of a new consultation set up by NHS Kent and Medway, asking for views on accessing health services in Sittingbourne.

It is available until June 26 following a motion put forward by NHS Kent and Medway’s Integrated Care Board (ICB).

Cllr Monique Bonney, who represents West Downs on Swale council for The Swale Independents Alliance, is urging residents to have their say.

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The 49-year-old explained: “For the last few years, I’ve been moaning about poor healthcare provision in Sittingbourne and the surrounding villages as they are completely overstretched and overwhelmed.

“It is the principal town in Swale serving approximately 70,000 patients, yet it is extremely difficult to get a GP appointment in anything less than 2-3 weeks.

She added: “There is no same day doctor provision or emergency GP facility either, so instead we are referred to Sheppey Hospital which is quite frankly mad considering it is quicker to get to Faversham or Medway if you live in a village south of Sittingbourne.”

Cllr Bonney also spelt out wider issues related to hospital facilities.

“We’re told we have an urgent care centre at the Memorial Medical Centre, but it’s actually for minor injuries – the nearest A&E for us is Medway, Maidstone or Ashford,” she said.

“It’s also ridiculous it closes at 9pm, which is probably the worst time to end up in A&E when hospitals are overstretched with patients on trolleys in corridors.”

She added: “We need a pharmaceutical service too which opens and closes in tandem with minor injuries and urgent treatment.

“It’s absolutely ridiculous to also be prescribed medication and then not being able get hold of it because Sittingbourne has no late opening pharmacies.”

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Residents of Sittingbourne have long spoken of the need for improved treatment facilities having launched a wave of criticism towards its surgeries two years ago.

It comes after patients complained they’d been left on hold for hours and forced to make hundreds of calls a day just to get through to reception.

Recent figures from NHS England paint an equally worrying picture.

The body has 64,788 patients registered at seven surgeries in the town as of May 2023, with the Memorial Medical Practice seeing the highest number at 16,678.

However, with just 34 GPs at all seven practices, this equates to one GP per 1,905 patients – more than 10% higher than the national average of 1,700.

Cllr Bonney, who back in 2016 called for more attention towards end-of-life care, believes a lack of new facilities is a key contributor to problems accessing healthcare.

“Certain people are hopelessly behind the curve and that’s why it’s an appalling state of affairs,” she added.

“The whole situation is a complete car crash, and there are some residents dying when they shouldn’t be because they are unable to get an appointment.

“One resident I know was 57 when she went into Medway Hospital, but then died three weeks later of bowel cancer when it should have been picked up months beforehand.

“We also haven’t had a single new surgery built in years, and that’s why health and wellbeing have always been a priority of the coalition because we know pressure needs to be taken off GPs.”

Sittingbourne and Sheppey have some of the worst health and deprivation statistics, according to the councillor.

“Something just has to change because the town has had so much new housing, but not a growth in health facilities and no adult hospice either is here,” she added.

Her fears are shared by residents also.

Debbie Pettit, 59, said: “I once tried 121 times to get through to reception on the phone at The Meads Medical Practice, so getting an appointment is a nightmare.

“It feels like people don’t want to help you, and of course going to Medway Hospital also scares me for the future because it’s not only far away but is so clearly understaffed.

“My family were also told the waiting time to get on the books at my surgery is six months.”

Another, Sarah Mitchell, 52, added: “People are being thrown into Sittingbourne and you can see that with the amount of houses now.

“So there’s far less amenities and facilities for people, and access to services like mental health is atrocious.

“It just feels like you can only go to A&E if you’re on death’s door as that’s the only way you’ll be seen.”

It just feels like you can only go to A&E if you’re on death’s door…

The NHS consultation is being undertaken to get a wider understanding of the situation in Sittingbourne.

Its briefing paper states: “The review is being undertaken to understand current and future demand and capacity for community services provision in the Sittingbourne area.

“All results will then be analysed and a summary report submitted to Medway and Swale Health and Care Partnership.”

Practice manager of The Chestnuts Surgery, Shaun Potter, says his surgery at East Street is performing at a high level for its patients – although admits recruiting staff remains a challenge.

He explained: “I appreciate 2-3 weeks is a long time to wait for an appointment, however this is not the case at The Chestnuts Surgery.

“Last week, we offered more than 585 consultations and saw 506 patients face-to-face in the practice, with 15 patients seen at home and 45 care home residents having a visit from us, plus another 64 video calls being completed.

“I cannot comment for other surgeries in Sittingbourne, however we do work hard to assist as many patients as possible in challenging times with a number of vacancies across the locality.”

NHS Kent and Medway have been approached for comment.