21st October 2025 AD from David Halpin FRCS
Dear Ms Jones and board members - https://www.torbayandsouthdevon.nhs.uk/about-us/whos-who/
You kindly called me back c. 1.15 today. I had spoken bluntly but without any foul words to a secretary in your office . The essence - my sister Mary Bedforth, 16 months my younger, had become more aggressive in the Mulberry Care Home, Brimley last afternoon. She had been looked after very well there since she was resident from April 1st 2023, with her agreement. Being only three miles from our home here at Haytor, it was easy for Sue and me to visit her often - say with flowers from the garden.
Eventually she kicked out a window ?in the 'library' and jumped through it. The senior care worker who 'phoned me to report all this spoke of no lacerations. The paramedics were called and took her to Torbay A&E at c. 7pm. I have learned that she is in cubicle 13 presently - 2pm 21-10-24. As a result of your urging, the Senior House Officer of the medical team who is looking after Mary, 'phoned me. Dr Matthew ........ greatly reassured me. The team have found no organic cause for her disturbed mental function - the first duty, but will consider her thyroid function. She has been receiving l thyroxine and more recently an 'anti-depressant' in liquid form because she had been refusing to swallow tablets. One can easily imagine her spitting some out.
I told this good young doctor the essence of her complex medical history. I emphasised her previous high intelligence and mental energy and how she was my right hand man for Palestine, OUR NHS and David Kelly CMG DSC especially. I spoke of the negligent care she had received via the Guildowns practice in Guildford. I did not mention that a lucid letter of complaint re Dr Denton of that practice to the Heartlands CCG was never answered - a common practice now.
So, this records my gratitude that she is receiving the best of medical care. I learned incidentally that she has a pubic ramus fracture and a compression fracture of T10, both of which will be helped by ordinary analgesia and early weight bearing with a crutch/crutches. I now concentrate on the void that opens - where she is able to be cared for if she survives. Her 'respiration' is second class. Dr Matthew spoke of a peripheral hospital ie one of the few Community Hospitals left after the scything/salami slicing. They would not be able to cope and are not set up to look after bad mental illness. I know Totnes has had many with dementia, discharge to home being impossible for some, but Mary will be too much for it - especially given nurse staff ratios at night.
I have spent many thousands of hours attempting to inform ignorant and uncaring politicians that their 'policies' were going to fail many sick citizens, and sadly, the hospital governing boards went along with the diktats, 'change', 'wellbeing', 'care at home', ''integrated care'' etc
A good example is this to the long standing chairman of the Torbay Hospital Trust Admiral Sir Richard Ibbotson KBE, CB, DSC, DL - now retired. The subject - 'care at home', which was always the priority in British medicine.
https://dhalpin.infoaction.org.uk/37-articles/nhs/216-an-example-of-the-low-standards-of-ethical-principle-and-thought-in-our-nhs
I did not even have the courtesy of an acknowledgement. I see that I copied him in six times in all and this is most pertinent
https://dhalpin.infoaction.org.uk/37-articles/nhs/330-letter-to-dr-robert-dyer-mb-chb-medical-director-at-torbay-hospital
I note https://www.torbayandsouthdevon.nhs.uk/about-us/whos-who/ that of the 16 board members, 3 have laid hands on patients. I note skills in 'informatics', 'change' etc.
I ask, nay demand, that each board member sit for an hour in the evening in the A&E 'waiting' room if a seat is available. And after they have counted the waiting ambulances and spoken to a few of the crews. 'How long have you been waiting'. 'How does your waiting reflect on the response times of the crews out on the roads?
That they declare whether they are members of any association like the free masons. There has been an obvious influence of such association in previous decades. I suffered from this likely influence in my efforts as a consultant in trauma and orthopaedic surgery 1975 to 1992 to provide an efficient and kindly service in these specialisms AND more widely. My pension on early and unwisely agreed retirement was enhanced by 6% for 'industrial injury'. A euphemism. I testified to two particular episodes of gross corruption in 'management'
Finally, I wish the board members to view one of these two video recordings of several, dealing with OUR NHS and how it was surreptitiously set up to fail OR limp. Note that 50% of THRs now take place 'privately'.
https://dhalpin.infoaction.org.uk/videos >>
Preface - NHS Going Going Almost Gone: David Halpin at UKIP SW (not a member)
David Halpin MB BS FRCS (Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons). Retired consultant orthopaedic and trauma surgeon. Fought single handed in Devon against Thatcher's Internal Market (in fact the Chicago School's) and with his orthopaedic colleagues for the retention of the world renowned Princess Elizabeth Orthopaedic Hospital in Exeter. Lost both fights. In this 43 minute talk, he speaks of plans going back 20 years to dismantle OUR NHS. The strategy is - destabilise > demoralise > dismantle. Other - central involvement in plea for an inquest into the death of Dr David Kelly. Fought, and still fights for justice for the Palestinian people.
https://youtu.be/su4Qm5pvagY 45 minutes OR
OUR NHS and our LOCAL HOSPITALS 3-12-2013 in our parish of Ilsington's village hall
https://youtu.be/vDD5I0Teg5Y 55 minutes before questions. Audio - echoic
A Quotation From:The NHS Dismantled on my home page
In his report to the Conservative Party’s Economic Reconstruction Group in 1977, Nicholas Ridley wrote that:"...denationalisation should not be attempted by frontal attack but by preparation for return to the private sector by stealth. We should first pass legislation to destroy the public sector monopolies. We might also need to take power to sell assets. Secondly, we should fragment the industries as far as possible and set up the units as separate profit centres."
From https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v41/n21/john-furse/the-nhs-dismantled
for truth and for 'no mother and child should be in the least harmed anywhere in our still beautiful world'
and 'to care is the most important characteristic of any worthwhile society'
David Halpin MB BS FRCS
