LIVES on the Ards peninsula will continue to be put at risk if the health service infrastructure does not improve, according to Ards councillor Kieran McCarthy.
Mr McCarthy was speaking after a constituent and neighbour discharged himself from the Ulster Hospital after he failed to receive adequate treatment.
Mr McCarthy said: “For a pensioner to be admitted into hospital with a serious health complaint to be left for hours in the cold without even a blanket defies belief.
“But then that patient has to discharge himself, because he was told after a lengthy wait that a bed would not even be available that day, is totally unacceptable.
“Clearly resources are inadequate. There is a real and urgent need for more beds and staff before winter arrives, as the current system cannot cope.
“I will be meeting with the Ulster & Community Health Trust on Monday as part of the campaign for the limited re-opening of the Ards Hospital for the peninsula community.
“A delegation will be taking the campaign to Downing Street next week, and it is important that the Government listens very carefully to what it has to say, as lives on the Ards peninsula depend on what decisions are taken.”