Ealing Liberal Democrats

Health and Social Services

Introduction

Health is a fundamental freedom. No one can fulfil his or her potential without the best possible health. At the time of the General Election, we were the only party honest enough to propose carefully costed tax increases to fund investment in the NHS. We also strongly believe in investing in promoting healthy living (such as the recent Liberal Democrat sponsored bill to outlaw tobacco advertising) as we believe health policy is about preventing illness, not just treating it. As such the integration of other policy areas is vital, for example better housing, health education and tackling environmental pollution. The NHS continues to suffer from under-investment and local government must work with doctors and managers to get the most from the little investment, and assist where additional local focus is needed.

Promoting Good Health

We will:

• Encourage people to take more responsibility for their own health. Improve health education and promote healthy living. Encourage people to take better care of themselves.
• Make prevention a priority. At the local level we will support the Lib Dem goals to abolish charges for eye and dental check-ups, and improve preventative health provision for women
• Put health promotion at the heart of council policy, making sure all departments assess the impact of their policies on health.
• Provide more community care places, improve preventive and rehabilitation services, give further support and respite to carers, and provide more social workers to support elderly people, those with leaning difficulties and others.
• Increase investment in the community alarm network to protect the most vulnerable residents in the community.

Healthy Environment

We will:

• Implement a local homes insulation programme to provide warmer homes for the less well off and allow GPs to prescribe insulation.
• With our colleagues in the environment department we will co-ordinate actions to improving Ealing’s environment, reducing local pollution which is responsible for respiratory problems like asthma, and creating a cleaner Ealing.
• Create one Ealing-wide strategy for the installation of telephone transmitters, making sure the thinking behind the strategy is communicated to all the residents, and that the companies have investigated all the technical options to minimise effects on people.

Bringing Health Services Closer to Local People

We will:

• Seek to increase local democracy and openness on Trust and Primary Care Trust boards and petition for the transfer of local responsibility for public health from health authorities to local councils.
• Get local people to play a part in setting health policies in their area. Break down the barriers that artificially divide health and social care and encourage the services to work more closely together.

Carers and the Elderly

We will:

• Campaign for free care for the elderly, as the present system is blatantly unfair. It is indefensible that dementia sufferers are forced to pay for personal care such as washing and bathing, which cancer patients in hospital get free.
• Ensure carers are fully involved in the process of needs assessments. Aim to give carers additional support especially with the provision of respite care.
• Review the plans to reduce Ealing’s Residential homes, and listen to the views of the residents and their families as well as taking financial implications into account.
• Support the charities that are calling for a children’s hospice for west London, and pressure the government to start funding children’s hospices.

Cooperation between the NHS and social services

We will improve the coordination between the NHS and Social Services. In particular, we will seek to dramatically improve local services for people leaving NHS hospitals just outside the borough that provide services to Ealing residents such as the Central Middlesex, Charing Cross and Hammersmith Hospital.

Defending Day Care

We oppose Labour's plans for centralisation of day care. Consultation and information-sharing to date has been inadequate - and too little account has been taken of the communities that have grown up at the council's current day care centres. In particular, we do not believe a case has been for the closure of the Carlton Road and Michael Flanders centres.

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Published by Martin Tod on behalf of Ealing Liberal Democrats all at 23 Fairlawn Court, Acton Lane, London W4 5EE. Printed and hosted by freenetname, 113 - 123 Upper Richmond Road, London SW15 2TL