Health Archives - Tom Hunt MP for Ipswich

Food Boxes for FIND

November 19, 2022 0 Comments by Chris in Health

Very pleased to have witnessed the delivery of 500 food boxes at FIND this morning. This represents a £15,000 donation from the charity Rapid Relief Team. It’s an international charity but has many Ipswich based volunteers. I’m pleased that my letter to the charity HQ seems to have made a different in securing this local donation.

Maureen at FIND. What a hero she is. Worked with her closely at numerous points over the past few years. She works tirelessly to support many of the most vulnerable in our community.
Cost of living is such a huge challenge. Even with the support announced by the Government this week such as increasing Universal Credit in line with inflation it will still be difficult for thousands of my constituents and I’m conscious of this. With energy bills soaring and inflation over 10% and the global headwinds showing little sign of abating the challenges will remain.
Huge credit to FIND and the Rapid Relief Team.

St Elizabeth Hospice

September 26, 2022 0 Comments by Chris in Health

Loved visiting the new St Elizabeth Hospice Cafe this morning. Met the Chief Executive, fundraising team and some of the brilliant volunteers. I gained a greater understanding as to the purpose of the cafe and what they’re looking to achieve. It’s been up and running for three weeks.

It provides a great space for Out patients to hang out between appointments and engage with services. Also good for families and friends visiting relatives who are in patients. They also plan to use the space to run a number of different classes and activities.

I got an update on The Big Hoot which only has a short time left before the final auction. There is a possibility that quarter of a million could be raised for the hospice which would be absolutely fantastic.

New Surgical Hub in Ipswich

September 5, 2022 0 Comments by Chris in Health

Pleased to hear this announcement following a letter I sent lobbying Ministers in the Treasury, calling for a new surgical hub in Ipswich hospital.

During a visit to the Emergency Department which is expected to open in 2023, I spoke to Nick Hulme – Chief Executive of East Suffolk and North Essex Hospitals Trust – about the possibility of additional funding for a new surgical hub. I am pleased to hear that our lobbying and insistence has paid off, and the Government are investing in a new surgical hub here in Ipswich hospital.

The new surgical hub will be in the Emergency Department, increasing capacity and therefore making it easier for Ipswich Hospital to cut waiting lists. Progress is being made on cutting waiting lists, and I hope this new surgical hub will help further this too.

Very pleased with this announcement, thank you to Nick Hulme and the team at Ipswich hospital, and the Department for Health and Social Care for pushing this forward.

Healthcare in Ipswich

July 18, 2022 0 Comments by Chris in Health

Another meeting recently to discuss healthcare in Ipswich.

I met Ed Garrett, Chief Executive Designate at the Two Rivers Medical Practice, who introduced me to Dr. Ayesha Tuzhara and Claire Pemberton, the Primary Care Lead.

Two Rivers medical practice is growing rapidly and has had successes in patient care. The practice is looking for funding to upgrade their service to keep up with patient demands.

We talked about the rising demand for mental health services, with about 50% of patients attending for mental health reasons. Ed Garrett also raised the level of physical inactivity in the Town as an issue, as well as access to dentistry.

I am continuing to push for better funding for our core services in Ipswich. I also recently asked the Department for Health and Social Care about obligating dentists to work for the NHS for 5-10 years after qualifying, to address the serious shortage of NHS appointments we have currently.

Getting Ipswich Active

July 15, 2022 0 Comments by Chris in Health

I am pleased to be supporting Ipswich Borough Council’s bid for the Levelling Up Fund. IBC have earmarked two projects which have a lot of potential, one of which is Broomhill Lido.

The Broomhill Lido has been closed for 19 years. The prospect of this pool reopening would be very exciting. The Lido would get a new gym, changing areas, high diving boards, and technology to keep it open longer hours. They are also shuttle buses planned to reduce the impact of parking on neighbouring streets. This pool could be the heart of the Broomhill area again, and would have huge positive impact on the local area. In terms of increasing access to a community facility, I think this project goes right to the heart of levelling up. It would be a great investment for the area and I will be lobbying Ministers to give this the best chance at success.

Thank you to Helen Pluck from IBC and Andrew Wilesmith, Operations Manager of Sports and Leisure, for giving me a tour of the Lido facilities. I will be working hard to push for these improvements to the pool and hopefully our bid will be successful.

Queens Speech Reaction

May 10, 2022 0 Comments by Chris in Crime Education Health Immigration Infrastructure Misc Opportunities for young people Uncategorized

A few thoughts on the Queen’s speech. Will be making a speech about it on Thursday. It was an amazing experience being in the Royal gallery but sorry not to see the Queen who I know we’re all thinking about at the moment.

Treehouse Children’s Hospice

February 25, 2022 0 Comments by Chris in Health

I was privileged this morning to visit The Treehouse children’s hospice. The hospice supports children and their families in many ways, including therapy, play, pain and symptom management, respite, and end of life care.

East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices is rightly a very valued organisation in our community, and I know it is something a large number of my constituents feel strongly about supporting.

Today I saw exactly how much work and dedication goes into the support the incredibly team here is able to provide. The facilities are really wonderful, but what makes this place so special is the people behind it. The nurses and every individual on the team clearly put all of their energy into their important, difficult, and rewarding role. I have a lot of respect for the team here making such a difference to the children and families they support.

I will be doing everything I can to support The Treehouse and EACH. EACH relies heavily on philanthropy and fundraising through their 43 shops, and events. The true cost of failing to support families is much higher than investing and providing proper psychological and therapy support to siblings and parents. Collaborating with other East Anglia MPs, I will be writing letters of support for children’s hospice funding to be on a parity with adult hospice funding, which it currently isn’t.

Grassroots Sports

January 24, 2022 0 Comments by Chris in Health

Whether it’s the BMX club in Gainsborough, the boxing club in Nacton, or the Ipswich Vales Exiles FC serving Maidenhall and Chantry, grassroots sports clubs and facilities are incredibly valuable to the local community. Supporting young people from some of the most disadvantaged communities should be seen as crucial for levelling up.

Today I asked the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing, and Communities if provisions would be made for grassroots sport in the levelling up funds.

I was pleased to hear the Secretary of State confirm that the levelling up bids will be able to support grassroots sport and cultural assets, which are crucial to ensuring young people have the opportunities they need and deserve.

I will be working closely with Ipswich Borough Council and other local partners to ensure that a successful bid is submitted, and that Ipswich benefits from new government investment in addition to the £25 million the Town is already receiving from the Town Fund.

Discussion on Men’s Mental Health

November 11, 2021 0 Comments by Chris in Health

At Chantry Library today we discussed a men’s mental health group. The last year and a half have been incredibly difficult for all of us, and I’m sure I’m not alone in saying that mental health has been impacted. I think a men’s mental health group is a great idea and hope this really takes off.

We also talked about the purchase of a new amnesty knife bin, a tool to combat knife crime. We know the devastating consequences of knife crime and carrying weapons – it’s important we do whatever we can to reduce knife crime.

Aqua Pharmacy

November 8, 2021 0 Comments by Chris in Health

I was pleased to visit Aqua Pharmacy again last Friday to congratulate them on their recent milestone of administering 50,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. This is a massive achievement and one the whole team at Aqua should be very proud of.

The vaccine and booster programmes are essential in getting us through the next few months, so I would like to encourage people if you haven’t already to go and get you vaccine and booster vaccination.

While I was at Aqua I was disappointed to hear about some of the abuse they have been getting from those who do not think vaccination is the right decision.

The staff at Aqua Pharmacy should be commended for what they are doing, not receiving threats.

Category: Health