Tag Archives: HSE

RECORD overcrowding at the Mid-West’s main hospital has been strongly condemned at a meeting of Clare County Council, with an urgent call for a new regional facility for elective procedures. A motion from Councillor Johnny Flynn at April’s meeting called for a public, electives-only hospital, “in light of the record trolley numbers, lack of bed and clinical capacity at UHL”. The Fine Gael member said it would be “a failure of government” if no such facility was provided, given the worsening issues at University Hospital Limerick (UHL), in terms of emergency care and the growing waiting lists for elective procedures. “Everyone is very familiar with the Teamwork Report, published in 2009, because it recommended the closure of three Emergency Departments,” Councillor Flynn said. “At that time, they had combined admissions of 39 people per day. In March 2022, that figure was 245. In January 2012, there were 304 people on trolleys and that was considered to be an emergency. “In …

  A NEW Chronic Disease Management Hub delivering services to patients with cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease and Type II Diabetes is being rolled out in Clare.   The HSE confirmed this major health development to Deputy Michael McNamara in response to his parliamentary questions about lengthy waiting lists for podiatry services in County Clare. There are currently 542 patients waiting to be called for their first appointment and 3,461 patients on the active Clare database. It has emerged there are on only two senior podiatrists and one staff grade podiatrist delivering podiatry services in the county. The Head of Service for HSE Primary Care Services outlined 20 full-time specialist roles are to be assigned to the Chronic Disease Team in Clare. Based at the new Primary Care Centre on the Station Road in Ennis, services will be provided on a “hub and spoke model” across the county. The positions include specialist, senior and staff grade podiatrists; senior and staff grade …

NO new acute, sub-acute or ICU beds will be opened in the Mid-West this year, according to HSE figures released to Independent Clare Deputy Michael McNamara. In response to Deputy McNamara’s Parliamentary Question, the HSE’s Acute Operations department confirmed none of the six hospitals in the UL Hospitals’ Group will receive any of the 411 acute and 36 ICU beds scheduled to be opened this year subject to staffing and completion of some capital works. “The provision of additional bed capacity on its own will not resolve the overcrowding problems at University Hospital Limerick (UHL), but the delivery of new acute, sub-acute and ICU beds should certainly be part of the solution,” stated Deputy McNamara, who described the exclusion of all six hospitals in Clare, Limerick, and north Tipperary as “disgraceful”. “UHL is the most consistently overcrowded hospital in the country having recorded 76,000 attendances in 2021, up 16% compared to 2020 and up 7% on 2019, and with 91 …

THOUSANDS of students from all over Clare, Limerick and Tipperary took part in an event hosted by the Junior Health Sciences Academy, which sought to inspire thousands of students to seek a career in healthcare for themselves. The two-day virtual Junior Health Sciences Academy Early Careers showcase, one of the year’s biggest events of its kind, was open to students throughout Ireland, and recorded a big attendance of students from the region. Hosted by the Health Sciences Academy (HSA), together with Limerick and Clare Education and Training Board and Limerick Education Centre, the webinar gave students valuable information about the educational courses and careers that are open to them in healthcare in the Mid West region. The Health Sciences Academy is a partnership between the University of Limerick, UL Hospitals Group and HSE Mid West Community Healthcare. The three partners in HSA share the aim of improving health and wellbeing for the people of the Midwest. The Junior Health Sciences …

THE HSE is coming under increasing pressure to provide more dental care after it emerged 3,148 Clare children are waiting for a routine dental appointment, writes Dan Danaher. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne has claimed the HSE is failing Clare children under the Health Act by not providing them with their statutory entitlement of routine dental screening in primary schools. The Sinn Féin Deputy urged the government to take urgent action against the “unacceptable” figures. “The HSE is not providing adequate dental screening to primary school children and is failing children under the Health Act. “In Clare, there are an estimated 3,148 children are waiting for a routine dental appointment. “Failure to provide this important healthcare runs the risk of seriously harming children’s health. These figures are totally unacceptable and reveal a growing crisis in children’s dental care.” Prior to Covid, reports from The Irish Dental Association (IDA) stated that an increasing number of children are only being offered examination and dental …

Sale of land depends on securing planning THE HSE has been urged to lodge a planning application for the development of a new €25 million community hospital in Ennis at the earliest opportunity. The call was made by Deputy Joe Carey after the HSE confirmed it intends to lodge a planning application for this project in the first quarter of 2022. Jim Curran, HSE national director of capital and estates, said the HSE has “sale agreed” lands comprising 5.09 acres of Diocesan property near the Turnpike in Ennis for the provision of a new 100-bed community nursing unit. However, the sale of lands is subject to planning permission for the development of a community nursing unit. This project will see a new state-of-the-art facility, providing a 100-bed HIQA compliant community nursing unit for long stay residents including 88 single, four twin rooms and four palliative care facilities. A full design team was appointed in March 2021 following a tender and …

A nursing union has called for the curtailment of elective treatments in University Hospital Limerick to reduce the expected spike in overcrowding in the Emergency Department over the coming weeks.   The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has called on the HSE to publish and implement a Plan B for dealing with the capacity crisis that is escalating within the public acute hospital system. The INMO has requested all activity except urgent emergency care to be curtailed in the public hospital system. INMO General Secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha expressed concern about the high numbers of patients presenting to Emergency Departments across the country. “From experience we know that if there are 287 patients for whom there is no bed in a hospital on December 30th, we know that figure will be tripled in early January. It is time now to scale back all activity within our public hospital system to emergency activity only. “Our public health service is too small …

THE HSE has announced the opening hours for Community Testing Centres in the Mid-West over the Christmas/New Year period, and have asked the public to remember that, at present, walk-in testing is not available. The are directing those who require a PCR test to book an appointment online. The online booking system, and further details, are available via https://www2.hse.ie/conditions/covid19/testing/get-tested/ Opening hours for Covid-19 Community Testing Centres are as follows: December 25 – Limerick Test Centre – 10:15 – 13:30 Clare Test Centre – CLOSED Nenagh Test Centre – CLOSED December 26 Limerick Test Centre – 07:45 – 17:15 Clare Test Centre – 09:15 – 16:45 Nenagh Test Centre – 08:30 – 17:45 December 27 – 31 – Normal CTC Hours Limerick Test Centre – 07:45 – 19:00 Clare Test Centre – 09:15 – 18:30 Nenagh Test Centre – 08:30 – 19:45 January 1 and 2, 2022 Limerick Test Centre – 07:45 – 17:15 Clare Test Centre – 09:15 – 16:45 …