*University Hospital Limerick
CLARE TD Donna McGettigan will chair a public meeting on the delivery of emergency healthcare services in the Mid-West.
The recent report outlined three options: the increasing of capacity at UHL, the expansion of UHL to another adjacent site, and the provision of a new Model Three hospital in the Mid-West.
Donna has long argued that a new hospital should be based in Ennis.
Kathleen Funchion MEP for Ireland South, Maurice Quinlivan TD for Limerick, and Senator Joanne Collins from county Limerick will speak alongside Donna McGettigan. Sinéad Madden PhD candidate at the University of Limerick, Founder of the Hybrid Simulation Modelling Lab (HSML) and author of the Midwest Integrated Demand and Capacity Analysis for Regional Emergency-care (MIDCARE) series of independent studies will also speak at the event.
It will take place on January 29th at 7pm in the Temple Gate hotel in Ennis.
Donna told us, “When the report was first issued, we in Sinn Féin demanded that all three options be commenced as soon as possible and progressed together. The first two options will provide short-term relief to the health services and users, while the third is the best long-term option to finally provide people in the Mid-West with the emergency health services they need and deserve.”
“Over the past three years, 12,000 Clare people attended the emergency department in Galway Hospital. That demonstrates a shocking level of desperation among people in Clare. It also shows the knock-on effects our crisis is having on others.”
“We are organising this meeting to explain our position and give an update on the work we have been doing, but more importantly, to hear from those on the frontlines such as nursing unions, patients’ groups etc. We also want to hear from patients themselves and their families, who are suffering because of the failure of the current healthcare model.”
“We insisted that all Mid-West region TDs and Senators write to the minister demanding the simultaneous implementation of all three options in the report. Despite that, the minister has said she will look at the first two options and the establishing of a new hospital can be looked at later. It will take years to build a new hospital, so it is vital that it is commenced as soon as possible. Otherwise, we will find ourselves back in this position as any new facilities will be overwhelmed as our population increases.”
“Unfortunately, some of the elected reps who co-signed our letter are also backsliding and echoing the minister’s position on the new hospital.”
“We need the strongest possible coalition to demand that all three options are pursued. That is the only effective way to pressure the government. Otherwise, this report will come to be seen as another wasted opportunity to finally fix the healthcare service in the Mid-West.”
