Nusrat Ghani, MP for Wealden, has welcomed recent announcement of additional support to the cover cost of hospital travel, an initiative she supported during her time as Transport Minister.
For the last few years, Nusrat has been working with Age UK charity on raising the issue of the serious difficulties older people face when travelling to their hospital appointments. Finally, NHS England have now completed a review and are changing the system for the better, including improving the eligibility criteria for non-emergency patient transport, which has been an issue for so many people.
Nusrat played an instrumental part in supporting this initiative during her time as Transport Minister, stressing the inclusion of transport to hospital in the Inclusive Transport Strategy and raising the issue with the Department of Health and Social Care. She previously chaired the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Ageing and Older People, lead the campaign in Parliament to tackle elder abuse and launched the Sussex Elders’ Commission report in 2016 which addressed safety for older people.
Nusrat Ghani said: “Improving people’s journeys to hospital has been a low profile and low priority issue for too long. People in need of non-emergency hospital transport are often the elderly and those living with disabilities and mobility issues. Accessible hospital transport services are key in ensuring they do not miss their appointments and I am pleased to have helped secure changes to make it simpler for patients to access NHS care and improve their overall experience.”
