Caroline has been a regular campaigner for health and social care provision since her election in 2010. This passion was recognised when she was appointed as Minister of State for Care and Mental Health in the Department of Health & Social Care from 2018-2020.
Most recently, constituents have been concerned about the quality of service provided by the Willow Group. Before meeting with them, Caroline extended some questions to the people of Gosport via Facebook, receiving key feedback about wait times, availability of appointments, and difficulty accessing online consultations. Caroline has been clear that this is simply not good enough for a practice which has over 48,000 registered patients, nearly half the constituency's population. Following the meeting, Caroline has expressed the importance of recognising that while the staff work exceptionally hard with enormous demand, pressure must still be put on the Willow Group's leadership so that improvements can be made.
Caroline has also campaigned actively with local Councillors to expand health provision in Lee through the opening of a second pharmacy. In May, she met with James Roach, Director of Primary Care for Hampshire, to push for progress, culminating in July with a Call to Action, which saw an incredible turnout from constituents supporting the project, stressing the current difficulties that Boots pharmacy has faced in addressing the needs of Lee residents. Caroline is committed to continuing to champion this cause in the constituency and in Westminster.
Access to dentistry has been a growing issue across the Gosport Constituency. Caroline has been working closely with Portsmouth University and Health Ministers on plans to expand their existing Dental Academy into a full Dentistry School, which would attract more dentists to the area. Portsmouth already have 100 graduates each year, including 80 students on placement providing vital NHS dental treatment for around 7,000 local people.
Caroline is continuing to raise these issues in Parliament and with Hampshire & Isle of Wight ICB to ensure that Health provisions remain accessible for all those across Gosport, Lee-on-the-Solent, Stubbington and Hill Head.
