ACTIVISTS including patients, politicians and medical staff gathered to demand urgent action to save the NHS at a rally outside a Worcester hospital.

Around 60 people assembled outside the main entrance to Worcestershire Hospital today (Saturday) for the national day of action, organised locally by It’s Our NHS Worcestershire.

Similar rallies took place across the country, most at 11am, organised by Health Campaigns Together and the People’s Assembly Against Austerity as concerns mount about what some have described as an NHS crisis.

Many of the campaigners remain worried about cancelled operations, bed shortages, rising waiting times and the number of patients being cared for in trolleys in A&E corridor over the winter.

Demonstrations also took place locally at Malvern Community Hospital, Evesham Community Hospital, Tenbury Community Hospital, the Alexandra Hospital in Redditch and Kidderminster Town Hall.

At Worcester some of those in the crowd carried placards bearing slogans like ‘Hands off our NHS’, ‘Save our NHS’ and ‘NHS emergency, no accident’ as activists handed out leaflets and ‘Vote Labour’ stickers, some sheltering from the rain under red Labour umbrellas.

One placard featured the slogan ‘Hunt has blood on his hands’, a reference to incumbent Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt. The placard also had a red hand print on it to drive the message home.

Those attending the rally were a cross-section of the community, including former patients, members of the public, Labour Party members, representatives of the Revolutionary Communist Group and leaders of Betrayed By Our Trust, including chairman Nigel Gilbert and vice-chairman Tracy Morris.

Mr Gilbert said: “Campaigners and the wider public are now seeing that we cannot get the truth about the NHS either from the Government or from the trusts and others who manage the services.

“We are supposed to be reassured that an extra £29.6 million is being found for the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, when we know that £229 million per annum must be saved from the county NHS budget by 2021.”

“We know the truth from staff.”

Angie Wood, aged 42, who lives in a narrowboat in Droitwich said she had been cared for by the NHS since being diagnosed with spondylosis and osteoarthritis.

Mrs Wood said she was now working again part time as a chef thanks to the NHS. Her health problems had forced her to take a two and half year break from work.

She said: “I love the NHS and I’m here to let people know we can’t do without it. At the moment it’s under so much pressure. That’s why we all need to save it, no matter your political ideology.”

Andrew Tull and wife Fiona of St Peter’s, Worcester, also attended the rally.

Mr Tull said: “We’re concerned about the way the NHS is going. It’s chronically underfunded and moving towards privatisation which would cut access for a lot of people.

"This hospital has particular problems. We have even considered moving out of the area to get near a hospital that has better standards of care than this one delivers.”

Mrs Tull said: “I really sympathise with GPs. They’re struggling to deliver a service. Our own experience is that we have to wait months for quite routine consultations.

"It’s not been life-threatening to us. But there are others for whom the clock is ticking and time is running out.”

Rob Crean of Northwick, Worcester, lost his mother last year and said a year on things were even worse at Worcestershire Royal Hospital.

He said: “That is quite raw for me. The care she had was fantastic but the conditions the nurses were working in was outrageous. The Tories are letting everybody down.”

Labour leader of Worcester City Council, Cllr Adrian Gregson, said people needed to stand up and protect the NHS so that the people of Worcester and Worcestershire could have a service to be proud of.

He added: “I have nothing but respect for the nurses and ancillary staff and the directors and administrators who are working with one hand behind their back or even two because the Government’s attitude to the NHS is deceitful.”

A meeting about the crisis facing the NHS is scheduled to take place upstairs at the Cricketers pub in Angel Street, Worcester on Tuesday, February 27 at 7pm.