A LONG, HOT summer and an autumn of crisis seem certain for London's NHS as the Tory government's market reforms bring chaos to health care in the capital.
Already unions in two London health districts - Riverside and Bloomsbury & Islington - are discussing industrial action to fight massive spending cuts that threaten to decimate health services.
Riverside health chiefs have admitted that they are to axe at least 500 jobs as they struggle to balance their books: there are fears that the actual toll of job losses could be double this figure.
World-famous teaching hospitals and vital local hospitals have been losing out because they have been forced under the 'internal market' arrangements to compete at a huge disadvantage in the cut-throat fight for patients and revenue.
As a result many already face multi-million pound deficits for the current financial year, and are turning to massive cuts in services in their efforts to balance their books.
Bloomsbury & Islington health authority, probably the worst affected, faces a huge E20m shortfall on the income needed to run its University College Hospital and Middlesex Hospital, and €3m on the Whittington.
Last week they admitted they plan to close the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital for womerrand either the UCH or the Middlesex in order to claw back this shortfall. Nurses protest at Bloomsbury cuts (above). Where will they put the patients?
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CLOSURES OF THE Other big hospitals deep in financial rouble include the opted- out Royal London (E7m), Barts, St Thomas's (E5m) King's (E8m), and Riverside's two teaching hospitals, Charing Cross and the Westminster. With over 70 percent of NHS spending accounted for by staff costs, these financial problems have already begun to fall most heavily onto health workers. But the cutbacks, carefully staved off by the government until after the election votes were safely counted, are only just beginning. In the autumn a Tory-commissioned report by Sir Bernard Tomlinson will outline new proposals to rationalise hospital services in London. Health Secretary Virginia Bottomley no longer bothers to deny that on his hit-list for closures will be at least one teaching hospital: in fact anything up to three could face the axe.
But health workers and local campaigners can be expected to fight back in strength, as they have done against every major cutback and Already nursing staff in Bloomsbury and Islington health authority have staged strikes in defence of jobs, successfully overturning staff cuts in the mental health unit, and opposing the loss of 60 nursing posts at the UCH and Middlesex Hospitals.
With profound unease within their own ranks, the Tories remair rulnerable on their NHS policies: the left must work to ensure that every fightback receives the maximum possible support.
SAVE THE NHS STOP WARD
NURSE S QUALITY
PATIENT HREATENED SUPFORT