CAMPAIGNERS will march from St Mary’s Hospital to Cowes, get on the Red Jet, and continue to Southampton General Hospital to highlight the journey IW patients have to tackle.
The march, organised by Save Our NHS, takes place on September 23, meeting at 9.45am.
The group, consisting of concerned members of the public, has been raising serious concerns about the Sustainability and Transfor-mation Plan — a plan to increase the Island’s health care links with the mainland — and fears the IW will be hit by cuts.
Co-organiser Christine Lightbody, of East Cowes, said everyone who cared about the NHS was welcome to join in the event.
“We need to highlight the difficulties of travelling for patients and their families,” she said.
“We are desperate to keep our services on the Island and we have to fight for them.
“A lot of people still get extremely good care on the Island and that makes them think everything is OK, but there’s a big problem nationally and locally and we need to save our NHS.”
An IW NHS Trust spokesman said: “Our intentions are that patients in Hampshire and the IW will benefit from more health and care services being provided closer to or in their homes over the next five years.
“They will have more choice about when and where to receive treatment, less travelling time to attend appointments and less time waiting for appointments, diagnostic tests and test results.
“They will also have more opportunities to be cared for at home and in the community rather than in a hospital setting.”
l See letters, page 42.