On the 75th birthday of our National Health Service, the MP for York Central, Rachael Maskell handed a birthday card to York Hospital to thank staff for all their hard work and care.
Created by the Labour Government in 1948, the NHS is Labour’s proudest achievement in Government. Ms Maskell, a physiotherapist for 20 years in the NHS handed the birthday card to Simon Morritt, the Chief Executive of York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals and Tara Filby, the Deputy Chief Nurse on behalf of all who work in the NHS in York.
Since 1948, the NHS and its incredible staff have delivered an estimated 52 million babies in England and Wales. To help residents join in the occasion, Labour have created an online tool to find your own baby number. You can find out where you fit into the NHS picture by visiting: https://action.labour.org.uk/page/131000/data/1
Rachael Maskell MP says:
“I am sure everyone in York will want to join me to say a massive thank you for the incredible service the NHS staff have given over the last 75 years. None more so, than throughout the Pandemic, where staff faced the most unimaginable difficulties, in many cases, putting their own lives on the line to save others.
“The NHS treats over a million people a day in England, touching all our lives. Everyone is treated the same and given the help they need regardless of their ability to pay. The dedicated professionalism, love and care of staff is a testimony to the core values of the NHS.
“However, as we come together to celebrate the huge achievements of the NHS and staff over the last 75 years, we must also reflect on its current fragility. The challenges the NHS currently faces are far greater than anything we have seen over the last 20 years, with financial pressures mounting and patients waiting far longer to access care.
“As a nation, it’s important that we grasp the opportunity today to refocus on the future of the NHS and to ensure it has the resources to advance medical care with the staffing and resources to provide everyone the best possible health outcomes. I have spent a lifetime of work defending NHS services from cuts and will continue to speak out and campaign in Parliament for high quality healthcare accessible to all.
“Today we must celebrate the NHS and its outstanding staff and hold the words of its founder, Nye Bevan, from that 1945 Government, who said, “The NHS will last as long as there are folk with the faith left to fight for it.” As your MP, I am committed to fight for our NHS and for you.”