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Patsy McGlone
8th June 2010
McGlone: McGimpsey refuses
meeting on Mid-Ulster hospital
SDLP Mid-Ulster MLA Patsy McGlone said
Health Minister Michael McGimpsey has refused to meet him to discuss the
fallout from the closure of A&E at the Mid-Ulster Hospital in Magherafelt.
He said: “I am disappointed if not terribly surprised but an awful lot of
people in East Tyrone and South Derry will be absolutely infuriated. This
decision just dropped out of the sky without any local consultation and now
the Minister won’t talk to the people.
“Everyone thought we had an orderly transfer plan matched by an appropriate
build-up of services at Antrim Area Hospital. We haven’t got that and all
the evidence is that Antrim is under strain. Nor do we have any clear
picture of what sort of services will be retained in Magherafelt.
“The Minister is running from his responsibilities. Trying to fob me off
with a meeting with the Chief Executive of the Northern Trust is not on. The
decision was the Minister’s and it has consequences for which he must be
answerable.”
ENDS
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