Tag Archives: Limerick

AS Wednesday morning broke there were 63 people waiting for treatment on trolleys at UHL. Outside the beleaguered hospital’s front door some of those coming and going were happy to share their views and experiences of the region’s failing health system. One man, who didn’t want to be named, has been at the hospital for several days with his 86 year old mother. “She came in on last Wednesday morning at 2am and she was on a trolley until Friday night. She got a bed then, but she has been moved a few times since, she got moved from a private ward to the hall, to a ward and now she’s moved again today.” It is a very poor way to allow an elderly woman be treated, he says. “She has to be helped to the bathroom, she can’t do things herself. Her dignity is gone, she’s just thrown on a trolley and left there. She has to be helped …

UL Hospitals Group is urging members of the public to consider all care options before attending the Emergency Department (ED) at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) today, Tuesday October 15. The hospital is managing high volumes of patients that have arisen due to a busy 48-72 hours in the Emergency Department. “We apologise to those patients who are experiencing lengthy waits for beds, and we would like to reassure them, and their families, that we are working to alleviate the situation.  We are appropriately transferring patients to other hospitals in our Group and are working with the MidWest Community Healthcare to access appropriate beds within the community. All patients are receiving expert medical care and every effort is being made to make their stay as comfortable as possible,” UHL said in a statement today (Tuesday). “Meanwhile, we urge people to consider all available care options and not attend the ED at UHL unless absolutely necessary. It is crucial that the ED …

Gardaí have confirmed that they have arrested a second man in connection with the investigation into the murder of Aidan Kelly of Moyross, at Blackwater, Ardnacrusha, County Clare in 2006. A garda spokesman said they arrested a male in his 60s on Wednesday and following a period of detention at Henry Street Garda Station in Limerick he was released without charge, and a file is being prepared for the Director of Prosecutions. Meanwhile a man in his 30s who had been arrested earlier this week continues to be detained this Thursday at Henry Street Garda Station in connection with the same investigation. Aidan Kelly was killed on May 10, 2006 at Blackwater and up until Tuesday September 10, no arrests had been made into his murder. The Limerick man had been shot a number of times on the night of May 10 and a firearm was recovered at the scene. On Tuesday of this week a man in his 30s …

UL Hospitals Group has “sincerely apologised” to patients facing long waits Emergency Department (ED) during busy periods. On Friday there were 75 patients on trolleys, compared to 81 on Thursday. “The Emergency Department at UHL continues to be one of the busiest in the country. There has been a surge in presentations to Emergency Departments this week. We have been working hard to progress patients through the system to discharge, so that we can free up beds for the patients in the Emergency Department who are awaiting admission. Surgery at UHL has been curtailed over the last number of days to enable us to use that bed capacity for patients in the Emergency Department,” the group said in a statement issued on Friday. “Access to transitional care and home care package funding has been reduced over the past two weeks, which has led to an increase in delayed discharges. However, we continue to work with our community colleagues to progress transition …

THE failures of University Hospital Limerick, which recently broke Irish records for patients waiting on trolleys; was the background to a behind closed doors meeting between UL Hospitals representatives CEO Colette Cowan, Chief Clinical Director Paul Burke and Clare County Council on Monday. Councillor Tom McNamara was one of those who attended but he didn’t accept all that he was told. “They outlined the reason for the overcrowding, they said there was an MRI scanner down and they need a second one. They said that 25 beds extra were opened up when the 17 closed, which we found hard to believe. You know in your heart and soul if 25 beds were going up in Limerick Regional Hospital, there’d be a big fanfare. From what we can gather from below, there weren’t 25 beds open. How come if there were 25 beds opened, when the 17 closed, the numbers on trolleys jumped up to 81?” A few years ago the …

UL Hospitals Group is appealing to members of the public to consider all their care options before presenting to the Emergency Department (ED) at UHL. There has been a surge in presentations to Emergency Departments around the country in recent days and the ED at UHL is currently managing high volumes of patients including significant volumes of frail elderly patients with chronic conditions and complex care needs. “UL Hospitals apologises for any inconvenience caused to patients or their loved ones who have experienced long wait times in the ED at UHL, and we would like to reassure patients and their families that we are working to alleviate the situation,” the group said in a statement on Wednesday. “Members of the public are urged to consider all their care options at this time and not to attend the Emergency Department unless necessary.  Injury Units in St John’s, Ennis and Nenagh hospitals are open for appropriate injuries. Injury Units are open in …

THE Mid-West Careers Fair will take place in the South Court Hotel, Raheen, Limerick on Wednesday March 27 from 11am to 5.30pm. The careers fair is one of some 80 events taking place around the country during National Jobs Week which runs from March 25 to 29. Organised in conjunction with the Mid-West Regional Skills Forum, some 30 employers and 15 training providers will attend the Mid-West Careers Fair. Entry is free to all and jobseekers can register their attendance on the day. This event will provide an opportunity for people to meet with local companies actively recruiting. Local education and training providers will also be exhibiting at the event. Companies attending range from Multi Nationals to small and medium sized enterprises and include, Guidant IRC, OpTech Ltd, General Motors, First Data, WP Engine, Atlantic Aviation, Jaguar Land Rover and Johnson and Johnson. Many of the employers are returning to the event for the third and fourth time because they …

TWO Clare GAA clubs will table motions at the upcoming Clare GAA convention to alter the refereeing situation for senior championship games within the county. Sixmilebridge will propose to implement a referee-swap system, whereby referees from outside Clare would officiate at all senior club matches within the county and, likewise, Clare referees would travel outside the county to officiate elsewhere. The move, described in the motion, is to “avoid the current situation of clubs not being able to agree on referees and would provide the utmost impartiality”. Ruan GAA will propose that, “The appointment of referees for all adult championship games in both codes from 2020 onwards be the responsibility of the Clare GAA Referees Association”. This would effectively move control of referee appointments to games from the fixtures committee to the referees association solely. Sixmilebridge PRO Syl O’Connor stressed that his club’s motion was considered two years ago and that while some might “see this in a different light”, …