The fact that almost 58,000 people are now waiting for care across hospitals in the Mid-West has been condemned as a “national disgrace” by a local lobby group. The Mid-West Hospital Campaign (MWHC) has claimed removing 24-hour casualty cover from Ennis and Nenagh Hospitals in April 2009 has resulted in 58,774 people waiting for public hospital inpatient/day treatment, GI endoscopies or an outpatient appointment with a consultant throughout the region. New figures released by the HSE confirm that one in every three (33%) approved permanent Hospital Consultant posts in the UL Hospitals’ Group are either vacant or filled on a temporary or agency basis – an all-time high 68 out of 206 approved Consultant posts3 – an increase of 16 posts not filled as needed since November 2020. Outpatient waiting lists at hospitals in the Mid-West region have almost doubled, with a 94% hike since 2015. The number of ‘long waiters’ on the list to be assessed by a consultant …

THE number of referrals to Clare Crusader’s Clinic has jumped by 15% over the last 12 months due to the impact of Covid-19, it emerged this week. Clinic managing director, Councillor Ann Norton confirmed there has been a significant increase in the demand for their therapists in the clinic. A lot of work is taking place getting their therapists ready to assist children with additional needs once the primary schools re-open. “Families with new diagnoses are constantly coming to us because they can’t access a public service. The demand was very high during our very successful summer camps. “We were very fortunate to get a number of primary school teachers who came with new ideas. We had music therapists and a yoga teacher who was available every day. A lot of work and time was put into the summer camps. “We will continue to provide the yoga teacher and music therapists once funds are there to provide the service,” she …

THE UL Hospitals Group has announced John Sisk and Sons will start work on the new €90 million 96-bed en-suite single rooms at UHL this month. The construction phase will take at least two years to complete. Thereafter the new facility will also have to be equipped and commissioned for use before being put into operation. Approximately half of the beds will be new beds for inpatients while the remainder will be replacement beds allowing us to close or refurbish some of the more outdated in-patient accommodation on the site. Prof Colette Cowan, CEO, UL Hospitals’ Group, said: “Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the group have been supported by government and the HSE in opening 98 inpatient beds and 10 new critical care beds at UHL. This new single-room capacity has dramatically improved our ability to isolate patients and to protect many of the most vulnerable. “In spite of this progress, inpatient bed capacity at UHL and the …

A FULL TIME carer in her 60s has called on Health Minister Stephen Donnelly to allocate more resources and bed capacity to University Hospital Limerick (UHL) and Ennis Hospital after suffering a “nightmare experience” sitting on a kitchen chair for 14 hours. Geraldine Considine (67) from Ennis has outlined her very “upsetting and traumatic experience” when she was left sitting on a chair for 14 hours in UHL from 12.30pm on Thursday, June 16 to 2.30am on Friday, June 17. This latest revelation comes hot on the heels of the Clare Champion story which highlighted the case of a young Clarecastle man suffering from a collapsed lung who claimed he was left “crying in pain” for hours at UHL before he received medication after contacting the ambulance control centre for urgent assistance. Michael McCarthy, Clarecastle (24) recalled he had requested pain relief for approximately four and a half hours, which didn’t materialise until he rang ambulance control for help. Ms …

SENATOR Timmy Dooley has defended his decision to post a video on social media from Shannon Foynes port welcoming the first shipment of grain to Ireland from Ukraine since its invasion last February. This follows stinging criticism and claims from a North Clare tillage farmer that politicians who welcomed the arrival of 30,000 tons of corn for animal feed engaged in electioneering for votes from dairy and beef farmers. The Panama-flagged NAVI STAR left Odessa Port on August 5 carrying 33,000 tonnes of grain to Ireland on behalf of the Cork-based grain and feed company R&H Hall. Senator Dooley posted a short video on Facebook after visiting Shannon Foynes Port on Saturday, August 19, to witness the delivery of 30,000 tons of grain for animal feed. In his post he stated, “This is a really important shipment to secure feed for our dairy and beef cattle over the coming winter – enabling Irish farmers in turn to feed the Irish …

Deputy Cathal Crowe returned €800 out of a €1,000 political donation from a Cratloe party supporter after he was advised by the Standards in Public Office Commission (SIPOC) it exceeded the maximum amount that can be given in cash. Daniel Lehane, Cratloe, sent a cash donation worth €1,000 to Deputy Crowe on January 26, 2021. Deputy Crowe was the only Clare Oireachtas member who declared a political donation above €600 from one source. Deputies Joe Carey, Michael McNamara, Violet-Anne Wynne made no political donations declarations for the period January 1 to December 31, 2021, according to the publication of a new report from SIPOC. Senators Martin Conway, Timmy Dooley and Roisín Garvey also made no political declarations to SIPOC for last year. Under the Electoral Act 1997, as amended, public representatives may not accept donations in any year of more than €200 in cash, and not more than €1,000 in total value from a single source. They must disclose any …

Award-winning artwork by an Ardnacrusha product design student was exhibited during a prestigious Arts Festival in Tokyo. Hot on the heels of scooping a major award, Dan Killackey’s winning entry in the 68th Texaco Children’s Art Competition was selected along with three others by the International Foundation for Arts & Culture (IFAC) for exhibition at the 23rd International Arts Festival in Tokyo’s National Art Center from August 10 to 21. Dan, 18, from Ardnacrusha, was chosen as the overall winner of this year’s competition, taking first prize in the senior 16-18 years age category. Dan told the Clare Champion he was honoured to be apart of such a prestigious exhibition. “I was delighted to win a national award. Since 2019, I have known about this competition. I wish I had known sooner because I could have competed since I was six years old. I think it would be good to promote this art competition more in schools. “When I complete …

TWO Clare teenage DJs are scaling the heights in the dance music industry after working together as a warm up act for a major event in Glór recently. Shayne Mulrooney and Dave Falconer got a fantastic reaction from their fans after working side-by-side in Glór as the opening act on Dec Pierce’s hugely popular Block Rockin Beats tour recently. DJ, music producer and radio presenter, Shayne, who lives in Shannon, was over the moon when he reached No.1 for three days on the House Charts on Soundcloud online music streaming service platform last month. Overall, this track attracted more than 40,000 online streams. “It was about 15 minutes of music remixes I made into one mix, which really took off, Shayne told The Champion. “This was the first time I got to No. 1. I had been in the House Charts before at No. 50 for a few hours but it didn’t really go anywhere and I was gone again. …