'Cure the NHS' protest called off
A Cure the NHS protest set to take place in Stafford today has been called off after angry health service staff hit out at the campaign group.
A Cure the NHS protest set to take place in Stafford today has been called off after angry health service staff hit out at the campaign group.
Group members were due to be demonstrating in the Market Square between 11am and 1pm in a bid to drum up further support.
However, they have instead stayed at home to avoid inflaming tension between them and local nurses.
Cure the NHS, which has been calling for improvements at Stafford Hospital for more than a year, has staged a number of similar demonstrations in recent months.
Their efforts have been made in the run-up to the release of a long-awaited Healthcare Commission report on Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust, which is expected to raise serious concerns.
However, trust chief executive Martin Yeates suddenly resigned on Tuesday and some angry Stafford Hospital staff have since blamed Cure the NHS for "forcing" him to resign.
Some claimed "approachable" and "caring" Mr Yeates had been unfairly singled out and claimed campaigners had undermined staff morale and "frightened" patients through demonstrations outside the hospital.
Speaking to the Express & Star, Cure the NHS founder Julie Bailey said many members of the group were very upset after hearing the comments reported in the local media earlier in the week.
