The UL Hospitals Group is warning of significant disruption and service delays at Ennis General and University Hospital Limerick as medical laboratory scientists go on strike.
The planned industrial action has resulted in the cancellation of many inpatient and day-case elective procedures as well as some outpatient appointments in the MidWest.
As of 8am this morning, members of the Medical Laboratory Scientists Association are taking part in planned nationwide industrial action.
The 12 hour strike has led to the cancellation of inpatient, outpatient and elective procedures across UL Hospital Group’s six sites – including University Hospital Limerick and Ennis General.
Outpatient appointments which don’t require bloods to be taken are going ahead, and all those who are affected by the strike will be contacted directly by the hospital.
Essential services at UHL, including oncology and dialysis, will remain open.
The hospital’s Emergency Department will also remain open, but it’s anticipated that patients with non-urgent care needs are likely to experience significant delays in service.
Impacted services at UHL include some elective surgeries, bronchoscopes, endoscopies, and Warfarin clinics.
The Medical Assessment Units at Ennis, Nenagh and St John’s Hospitals will be running as reduced services, while Injury Units at those hospitals will be open as normal.
Some elective surgeries will be cancelled, as will endoscopies, on all three sites.
Elective surgery is being cancelled at University Maternity Hospital Limerick.
However, the emergency maternity unit and neonatal emergency department services will continue, as will labour ward services, and most antenatal appointments will go ahead.
As efforts continue at national level to try and avert the industrial action, UL Hospitals Group has been working with the MLSA locally to ensure that arrangements are in place to safely provide the curtailed range of services.
The UL Hospitals Group says it regrets the impact of these arrangements on patients and that work to reschedule appointments at the earliest possible opportunity is underway.
