Service overhaul 'better for smaller hospitals'

THE CHIEF executive of the Midwest Regional Hospitals Group, Ann Doherty, has stated that there will be no additional costs and that smaller hospitals will fare better from the reorganisation of acute hospitals in the midwest.

Currently, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is overhauling hospital services in the midwest, Galway and Roscommon.

Hospitals in the two areas have a combined budget of almost €500 million this year.

Last year, Minister for Health James Reilly acted by appointing Ms Doherty as chief executive of the midwest group and Bill Maher as chief executive of the Galway and Roscommon group.

Dr Reilly took action after Galway University Hospital (GUH) and Limerick Regional Hospital suffered budget overruns and continued long AE waits for patients.

Ms Doherty is in talks with unions on establishing a trust and clinical directorates to oversee services at Limerick Regional, Ennis and Nenagh general, St John’s Hospital, the orthopaedic hospital at Croom and Limerick’s maternity hospital.

Ms Doherty said: “At the heart of the genesis of this is about bringing clinicians into the centre of the leadership and management of the service.”

Ms Doherty said the reorganisation of services “will be better for smaller hospitals”.

She said: “If you look at our medicine directorate, there are 150 beds in the midwest outside of Dooradoyle in Limerick. At the moment, they don’t get used appropriately and there are patients in Dooradoyle who should be out in Nenagh and Ennis and vice versa.”

She said: “If they are under one system of governance, you will get better care and the patients will be in the right place at the right time. At the moment, organisational boundaries inhibit that.”

Ms Doherty said the reorganisation would not involve any additional costs.

On the overhaul of services in Galway and Roscommon, Mr Maher said: “I don’t think it is fair to say that progress hasn’t been made in some areas, particularly on waiting lists.

“Inpatient lists are more than two-thirds reduced since January.”

He said the establishment of the hospital group for Galway and Roscommon was not another layer of management.