CORK'S MERCY University Hospital should open its new €4.7 million emergency department immediately with the same number of staff to provide the same level of cover it is currently providing in its existing unit, the HSE's chief executive Prof Brendan Drumm said yesterday.
Prof Drumm ruled out providing any extra funding for the hospital to recruit additional staff which it says are necessary to run the new unit, and he questioned whether a city the size of Cork needs to have three AEs within a few miles of each other.
"I don't think you can keep three AE departments open 24 hours a day within a few miles of each other in a relatively small city like Cork and continue to say to the taxpayer that it's value for money - it's not sustainable in bad economic times," he said.
Last April, the Mercy's chief executive Pat Madden announced that the hospital would not be able to open the new facility on a 24/7 basis as a result of the projected shortfall in HSE funding, and would instead open on a part-time basis from 8am to 8pm.
That led to an intensification of talks with the HSE in a bid to resolve the ongoing dispute over staffing levels, with the hospital arguing that it needs an extra 25 staff to open the new 750sq m facility - which was completed in March 2007, to replace the existing 209sq m unit.
Prof Drumm said he could see no reason why the Mercy could not open the new unit to meet the existing demand and simply transfer from the existing smaller facility. "It's up to the Mercy to decide when they are going to open it, if they want to open with their existing resources; it's a beautiful unit - they could move everybody in there tomorrow as far as I can see. It's a pity for the people of Cork and for the staff that it's not open," he said.
Prof Drumm was speaking after addressing the HSE South Regional Forum, where he said studies showed that 70-80 per cent of people attending emergency departments did not need to do so and could be treated for minor injuries at primary care facilities.
Yesterday's meeting was marked by a protest by Socialist Party councillor Mick Barry, and members of the Campaign for a Real Public Service, who called on Prof Drumm to approve funding to allow the new Mercy emergency unit to open.
Mr Barry was ejected from the meeting when he and his supporters started chanting "H-S, HSE, open up our AE."