The HSE's 2017 Service Plan has cast doubt on whether there may be yet another delay in the opening of a new A&E unit at University Hospital Limerick.
The HSE's 2017 Service Plan has cast doubt on whether there may be yet another delay in the opening of a new A&E unit at University Hospital Limerick.
The unit, which has already been delayed on a number of occasions, had been expected to open fully in May – it's now slated to be fully operational late next year.
Sources have indicated that patients will still be seen in the new ED from May, but that has not been officially confirmed.
The new Emergency Department at Dooradoyle has been keenly awaited here for a number of years, given the regular chronic overcrowding there.
The project was initially due to be completed in 2016, but this has slipped on a number of occasions and the latest projected date for opening is May.
However, the HSE's 2017 Service Plan cast this into doubt by saying that the facility will not be fully completed until the Fourth Quarter of next year.
What exactly this means for patients is unclear – Clare FM sought comment from the UL Hosptials Group yesterday afternoon, and is still awaiting a response. However, a high level source has indicated that patients will still be seen there from May.
Under the plan, 1.4 million is allocated to recruit over 90 new staff for the unit – these are expected to be primarily nurses.
Elsewhere, the document outlines plans to reconfigure the Acute Medical Assessment Unit and Outpatient Department, creating 22 additional 'assessment' spaces while a total of 12.9 million is being allocated towards a Clinical Education and Research Centre, co-funded by UL.
A redevelopment and fit out of vacated areas of Ennis General is also due to be completed by the end of the year, with a local injuries unit slated to open in early 2018.
