Make tackling drink 'top of NHS wish list'
Reducing health damage caused by alcohol should be the number one priority for the NHS in Northamptonshire, according to patients.
A survey, asking whether NHS Northamptonshire's 916million budget was being spent in the right way, was carried out in all the county's towns. It produced a list of the top five areas that health managers should look at first.
The list was revealed at a public meeting this week, with health risks caused by alcohol topping the list followed by end-of-life care.
It comes after the cost of alcohol-fuelled crime and binge drinking in Northamptonshire was revealed in a report last month as more than 200 million.
It also revealed accident and emergency admissions caused by alcohol were rising at the fastest rate in the East Midlands.
Jane Meggit, director of communications and public engagement for NHS Northamptonshire, said: "Alcohol is an issue that came up in all our meetings around the county.
"That one was not a surprise because drinking doesn't just have an impact on health, it can also have a negative effect on crime and relationships."
According to the survey county patients also want the NHS to concentrate on care when they are at the end of their lives, such as when they have a terminal illness.
Mrs Meggit said: "People were saying they want a choice of where they spend their last days and it's something they seemed to feel very strongly about.
"Most people have said they would prefer to be at home with proper care but it's about making sure everyone has an option if possible." NHS Northamptonshire is looking to spend 916 million over the next 12 months on its 83 GP surgeries, 84 dental practices, 115 pharmacies and 59 ophthalmic practices.
County residents were questioned about the NHS's current five-year strategy and asked whether it still contained the right priorities and what could be done to retain the aim of making Northamptonshire the fittest county in the country.
The next priorities, in order, were :
n Working more closely with carers
n Better communication between patients and doctor's surgeries over things like appointments
n Making more minor hospital services available at GP surgeries.
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Wednesday 08 February 2012
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