Tag Archives: Mid-West Hospital campaign

A NEW petition containing 15,000 signatures supporting the upgrading of acute hospitals in the Mid-West including Ennis Hospital has been submitted by a lobby group to the Dáil Petitions Committee. This action was taken by the Mid West Hospital Campaign to put the spotlight on the need to tackle overcrowding at UHL and to address the situation of timely access to safe and proper healthcare in the Mid-West. The petition calls for the upgrading of Ennis, Nenagh and St John’s Hospital to Model Three acute facilities and the re-opening of emergency departments. It will be heard before the Dáil petitions committee this September 14. Campaign spokeswoman, Noeleen Moran said, there are 80 people lying on trolleys in the corridors of UHL and thousands more wait on lists for treatment. “We need our hospital upgraded and we need the emergency department reinstated. Clare people deserve timely access to proper healthcare.” A recent HIQA report highlights that UL Hospitals group is the …

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 …

A HOSPITAL action group has claimed it was “sidelined” from a briefing by the UL Hospitals’ Group, despite a motion passed at a recent HSE West Forum meeting. In a statement issued to the Clare Champion, the Mid-West Hospital Campaign group recalled members of this lobby group attended the Regional Health Forum West meeting on May 22. The purpose of their attendance was to get recognition that the hospital reconfiguration strategy in the Mid-West, which was implemented in April 2009, had failed and to demand the reinstatement of Emergency Departments at Ennis, Nenagh and St John’s Hospitals. “This motion was proposed by Councillor Liam Grant on behalf of the campaign and was passed unanimously,” a spokesperson for the group stated. “Ms Noreen Spillane Chief Operations Officer of UL Hospitals’ Group attended the meeting and offered to have a meeting with Regional Health Forum members for the Mid-West area to discuss concerns. Councillor Grant requested that Mid-West Hospital Campaign be included …

THE publication of a strongly critical report of the Emergency Department in University Hospital Limerick (UHL) has prompted a range of emotions for a local hospital campaigner. Marie McMahon from Ennistymon has been actively campaigning for the restoration of 24-hour casualty cover in Ennis, Nenagh and St John’s Hospitals for years. Her husband, Tommy died on a hospital trolley in April 2018 after spending about 36 hours waiting to get a bed. In an interview with the Clare Champion, those sad memories lingered for Marie, but she was happy that the HIQA report had vindicated the long, hard fight by the Mid-West Hospital Campaign for decent health provision for the people in the region. “The HIQA Report has validated all the things we have been saying that have been missed. Finally a body with some authority has stated in a report what those in authorities have been denying. “Everyone was putting their own spin on things. This report shows we …

UP to 15,000 people marched in Ennis in November 2003 to oppose the proposed downgrading of Ennis Hospital, which was recommended in the controversial Hanly Report. Last Saturday, a paltry figure of about 70 people turned up to listen to members of the Mid-West Hospital Campaign present a case for the return of a fully functioning Accident and Emergency Department to Ennis and Nenagh Hospitals. A lot of public representatives also decided to stay away. The attendance included Deputy Cathal Crowe, Deputy Joe Carey, Senator Timmy Dooley, Councillor Mark Nestor and Councillor Donna McGettigan. Despite the poor turnout, one of the main organisers, Noeleen Moran, was satisfied with the attendance when questioned by the Clare Champion. “We are getting this campaign up and running after two years of lockdown. It is not an easy thing to encourage people to be in crowds after Covid-19 but we are satisfied with the turnout today. “We only spent two weeks advertising this protest. …

PROTESTS are being planned to highlight the state of local health services, particularly the situation at the region’s main hospital where the number being treated on trolleys frequently exceeds 100 people daily. The Mid-West Hospital campaign is organising a day of action starting at the former Debenhams store in Limerick this Saturday at 1pm. The following Saturday, May 21, at 2pm there will be a protest at the Square in Ennis. A former election candidate for Sinn Féin, Noeleen Moran said the Mid-West Hospital campaign is not aligned with any party, and wants to get support from across the community. “It goes back to 2019, we had the first public meeting in the Old Ground. There’s a mixture of people from all political parties and none, and trade unions are supporting it too. “It started because of the level of overcrowding in University Hospital Limerick, there was a need to do something. “Marie McMahon was one of the founding members, …