By Dr Phil Beds
A CONFUSING reshuffle of beds at three wards and a specialist unit at Furness General Hospital could ultimately mean Barrow patients having to traipse-arse through to Lancaster in some cases.
Incomprehensible NHS chiefs at the trust in charge had hoped to keep this series of unpopular bed closures and bewildering ward changes strictly in-house and among staff.
But patients found out and now the six NHS daleks in charge have put their names to a patronising statement that they didn’t consult with the public because there is “no change or reduction in services”.
Most patients would consider it a “change and a reduction in services” if it means having to schlep 40-miles down the A590 from Barrow to Lancaster in winter – even if our hopelessly out-of-touch hospital high-ups do not!
And if these changes are about funding, how about the six directors take a long, deep look at their own pay and pension packets?
In 2023-24, the ringmasters running the circus at UHMBT shared up to £1.3 MILLION between them.
If they hang around long enough, it won’t be long before they join the National Wealth Service’s Millionaires Club.
Aaron Cummins, chief exec, is paid up £250,000 and has been in post since 2018.
Jane McNicholas, chief medical officer, took home £365,000, including £152k pension.
Chris Adcock, chief financial officer, trousers up to £180,000 and has worked in the NHS for 18 years.
Alison Balson, chief people officer, was paid up to £185,000, including up to £40k pension.
Scott McLean, chief operating officer, gets up to £160,000 and has been at the UHMBT for two years.
Tabetha Darmon, chief nursing officer, who joined from Nottingham in 2023, got up to £170,000.
What’s more, the trust’s constantly revolving door of incoming and outgoing board members, also shared in the region of £150,000.
This will have been paid out to various namby-pamby do-gooders to sit around in pointless talking shops spouting bewildering acronyms.
Trust board meetings are long, tedious affairs where various talking heads stare blankly at PowerPoint slides and then mutter meaningless slogans amongst themselves about “birthing people, patient-centred values, triangulation and inequalities dashboards”.
Just this week the trust in charge of Furness Gen, the RLI and Westmorland General, crowed that identity badges for hospital staff will in future have to include their preferred pronouns.
E.g: She, her, hers; He, him, his; They, them, theirs.
It’s gone down like a fat kid on a see-saw.
People have piled in on Facebook to brand it “hideous, utter nonsense and a waste of tax payers’ money”.
ooooohhh matron.
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