The NHS: an SOS call!

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NHS Day of Action posterSaturday 26th February is the SOS NHS National Day of Action. Campaigners will be at Palmers Green Triangle between 11am and 1pm telling the public about the various threats to our National Health Service.

SOS NHS is the largest coalition yet formed in defence of the NHS, comprised of campaign groups, trade unions, health and care staff, social movements and civil society organisations. The coalition believe £20 billion is needed to provide funds for urgent staff needs, tackle soaring costs for backlog maintenance and reopen almost 5,000 NHS beds that have not been used since the pandemic began. To stop the continued worsening of the crisis in the NHS, the coalition aims to persuade the Government to take immediate, concrete steps to relieve the crisis in hospitals, mental health, primary, community and social care, make a major U-turn and revise the Spending Review.

Mike Forster, Chair of Health Campaigns Together, says:

"Health Campaigns Together has been an active and important part of the SOS NHS alliance since it was launched last year. The crisis in the NHS is now more acute than at the height of the pandemic. Staff vacancies are through the roof and waiting lists have never been higher. Emergency funding is urgently required to begin putting right the damage of austerity-driven policies over the last decade. NHS staff deserve a decent pay rise and the drift towards privatisation must be halted. We have built a formidable alliance of over 40 groups, unions and professional associations. Our voices must be heard. We are fighting for the future of the NHS. Please join your local protests this Saturday."

In addition to the Day of Action demanding emergency funding of £20bn in the spring budget, we have also launched a petition. Please sign it HERE and please do share widely. The aim is to formally present it to Parliament before the budget, but we need your help with getting the big numbers!

Rishi Sunak: We demand emergency funding for the NHS now! #SOSNHS

Holly Johnstonsos nhs petition started this petition to Rishi Sunak (Chancellor of the Exchequer)

As an NHS nurse, I have seen first hand the effect the pandemic has had on our patients, staff, and service. The NHS was already underfunded, but now it is at breaking point. We need an urgent injection of funds to save our health service, and we need it now.

We really feel the pressure of the 100,000 vacancies in the NHS, which means we are understaffed and often having to do the job of more than one person. The workload is impossible. Staff are leaving because they have had enough and there is little incentive to stay or join the NHS.

The safety of our patients and conditions for staff have been getting worse even prior to the pandemic - and it has been happening for over 10 years. We've seen our pay eroded meanwhile our responsibilities and skills have only increased and lots of staff are struggling to make ends meet.

We are paying for this crisis with our mental and physical health and in our pay packets and our patients are suffering all the time as a direct consequence.

But my NHS colleagues and I are determined to save our health service. That’s why we’re joining together with the major health unions and over 40 organisations to call on this government to act, to improve the health service, and to safeguard it for future generations

Our demands are:

1. Approve emergency funding of £20 billion to save lives this winter.

2. Invest in a fully publicly owned NHS and guarantee free healthcare for future generations.

3. Pay staff properly: without fair pay, staffing shortages will cost lives.

Across the NHS we are united in saying 'SOS NHS', and we need your support too. Will you sign my petition to help save the NHS?

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