It’s claimed consensus is needed among Midwest health campaigners and elected representatives to secure a second Emergency Department for the region.
Record-breaking levels of overcrowding were witnessed at University Hospital Limerick once again yesterday, and while trolley numbers have fallen today, the Dooradoyle facility remains the busiest in the country.
In the space of just seven months since May last year, the overcrowding record at University Hospital Limerick has been broken on three separate occasions.
Yesterday was the worst day on record, when according to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation’s analysis, 132 admitted patients were on trolleys.
That number has dipped to 109 today, but UHL is still the busiest in the country.
The UL Hospitals Group has attributed the increase in presentations to a surge in respiratory viruses over the Winter period, which it says has led to exceptionally high demand for inpatient beds.
The Health Minister and ULHG have consistently poured cold water on the prospect of reopening Accident and Emergency Units at Ennis, Nenagh and St.Johns, amid claims a lack of staffing and resources would put patient safety at risk.
The MidWest Hospitals Campaign is of the opinion though, that Clare’s elected representatives are not fulfilling the people’s mandate.
Marie McMahon from Ennistymon, whose husband passed away on a trolley at UHL in 2018, thinks the powers that be are more interested in deflection, than tackling the issues.
A Clare member of the HSE’s Regional Health Forum West claims that a “combine and conquer” approach may be preventing improvements in this county and that the reinstatement of an A&E in Ennis should be recognised as the best solution for the wider region.
UHL’s sole Emergency Department serves a population of 410,000 and the CHO 3 area serving Clare, Limerick and Tipperary is still the only Community Healthcare Organisation nationwide with only one ED.
Kilkee Fianna Fáil Councillor Cillian Murphy believes the government will only listen, if the people of the MidWest can reach consensus on which of the three Midwest A&Es closed in 2009 would be best equipped to alleviate pressure on UHL.
You can listen to the full interview below.
