A key Clare figure behind the Sláintecare report published five years ago insists the plan for this year means very little for the Midwest.
The Government has this week published it’s action plan for 2022, but it’s made no reference to an elective hospital for the Midwest, despite ongoing calls for such a facility to deal with overcrowding at University Hospital Limerick.
The Minister for Health yesterday published the Sláintecare Action Plan for 2022, which sets out ongoing priorities to improve our health and social care services.
The main areas include addressing waiting lists, the realignment of acute and community services through Regional Health Areas, further developments in shifting care to the community and investment in enhanced capacity and access to care.
Launching the plan, Minister Stephen Donnelly said that so far this year, considerable progress has been made in the areas of waiting lists, the National Elective Ambulatory Strategy and Regional Health Areas.
He’s committed to a progress report on the implementation of Sláintecare during the first six months of 2022 being published in the summer.
Under the plan, three new Elective Hospitals will be developed in Cork, Galway, and Dublin, despite recommendations in the original Sláintecare plan published in 2017 for an elective hospital in the Midwest.
Ennistymon-based Fine Gael Senator Martin Conway, who’s his party’s Seanad spokesperson on health, says it’s disappointing but he’s reassuring discussions for an elective only hospital in the Midwest are underway.
Former Independent TD, Dr Michael Harty, who was a key figure behind the all-party Sláintecare report five years ago says this plans means very little for the Midwest.
The now retired Kilmihil GP says the fact that the plan for 2022 has been published halfway through the year doesn’t engender any urgency in implementing the Sláintecare plan.
Dr Harty believes there are no practical solutions to problems in the Midwest, including waiting list issues, inadequate resources, staffing shortages, bed capacity issues, or low moral, which he says is now a huge issues in the health service.
And he has little faith that the plan to only develop three elective hospitals will change.
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