THE HEALTH Service Executive yesterday unveiled proposals to reorganise hospital services in Cork and Kerry which would see the centralisation of complex acute care at Cork University Hospital.
Prof John Higgins, who heads the project, moved to assure the public that no hospital would close and no service would be removed from any of the five local hospitals in the two counties without the introduction of a replacement service. He reiterated a previous commitment on services in Kerry, in which he said a controversial recommendation to transfer acute services from Kerry General would not be implemented.
“No hospital will close but all will fundamentally change how our services are delivered and no service will be withdrawn until a replacement service has been established and tested,” he said following the release of the report containing the recommendations.
The report, which cost some €280,000 and was produced by Horwath Consulting Ireland and Teamwork Management Services, recommends the transfer of all acute care from the Mercy University Hospital and the South Infirmary Victoria Hospital in Cork city to CUH.
Prof Higgins said a separation of emergency surgery and elective surgery would lead to greater efficiency as it would allow emergency surgery to be carried out at CUH while freeing up more theatre time for elective surgery in the other hospitals.
Under such a scheme, Bantry General Hospital, which carries out few out-of-hours emergency surgical procedures, would see its operating theatre being used for elective surgery from 8am to 8pm, resulting in a greater return from the facility, he said.
Prof Higgins said the issue of providing acute medical care in Mallow General Hospital was under review but that the hospital would continue to play an important role in conjunction with Cork University Hospital, Mercy University Hospital and South Infirmary Victoria Hospital in Cork city.
“The three Cork city hospitals are already working closely together in many clinical areas and by setting up single clinical teams in specialities such as medicine, surgery or anaesthetics, we can reduce unnecessary duplication.”
He said the aim was to provide as much appropriate medical care as possible locally through primary healthcare centres. A “reconfiguration forum” has been established, comprising representatives from general practice, community health services and all the acute hospitals in Cork and Kerry, and is expected to draft a response to the report by September.
Prof Higgins said the reconfiguration would have to be carried out within the HSE South’s existing budget of €1.4 billion but, with savings to be made through removing duplication, he believed investment would be possible and the project would be cost-neutral.
Hospitals report: Cork and Kerry
THE REPORT recommends the transfer of acute care to Cork University Hospital from Kerry General Hospital in Tralee as well as from Bantry General Hospital and Mallow General Hospital in Co Cork.
However, Prof John Higgins, who is leading the project, yesterday reiterated a previous commitment on services in Kerry, in which he said a recommendation by Horwath and Teamwork to transfer acute services from Kerry General would not be implemented.
He said all current acute services at Kerry General – including emergency departments, obstetrics, intensive care, acute surgery and acute medicine – would be retained on the Tralee site.
He also stressed yesterday that the principles rather than the detail of the report would guide the reconfiguration of hospital services in the two counties.
Prof Higgins also confirmed that the Health Service Executive supported the continuation of acute medical care in Bantry General Hospital, contrary to the report’s recommendation, but he stressed that it must be appropriately integrated into the wider hospital services in Cork and Kerry.