Heart attack care to bypass Ipswich

If you like polls, you may be interested in one being run by the local Evening Star here in Ipswich.

It appears that those who have a heart attack in Suffolk on or after 1st June will have to be taken out of county. This decision was taken by bosses on the quiet. Politicians, charities and even the local PCT were in the dark until the newspapers released the story this week. Suffolk’s connections to the three regional hospitals offering the care are not great, and many people live in rural or coastal areas, miles from the fast roads. Even the kind of care has changed and the length of time recommended to get to the hospitals has mysteriously crept up to fit to typical journey times. More on the story here. Even councillors are up in arms about it!

Even if you are not the kind of person to vote on local newspaper polls, perhaps you would want to email the Evening Star with your views at eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk or write to them at Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich IP4 1AN. They are running a campaign to stop this change going ahead.

Dad was treated for his heart attack at Ipswich Hospital and then Papworth in October 2006. One of the things that kept me going in those frightening first few minutes when I first found out, was knowing that he could be got to Ipswich Hospital within a short time. The alternatives are much further from where he lives.

This is not the first service to be removed from Ipswich Hospital, although it certainly matters enormously as heart attack patients need to be seen quickly.