Some elective surgery in addition to day surgery is to be retained at Monaghan General Hospital under plans approved last night by the Minister for Health, Mr Martin.
The plans, drawn up by a steering group established by the North Eastern Health Board (NEHB), will also see five junior doctors recruited to work in the hospital's emergency treatment room, which currently has just two beds but is being extended.
The hospital will in addition retain 24-hour medical cover, seven days a week. The range of elective surgery it will provide has yet to be approved by the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.
Amid growing concerns about surgical services provided at Cavan General Hospital earlier this year, when it emerged there were several adverse clinical incidents in the Cavan surgical unit, the NEHB set up a steering group to devise a plan for a joint surgery department between Cavan and Monaghan hospitals. That plan, which has now been finalised, was discussed at a meeting last evening between the chief executive of the NEHB, Mr Paul Robinson, a number of hospital consultants from the region, and the Minister.
The Irish Times has learned that the deal worked out will see all major surgery conducted at Cavan General Hospital, with three new consultant surgeons to be recruited to the Cavan-Monaghan Hospital Group to facilitate the development.
Furthermore, Cavan hospital is to be given funding for 15 additional medical beds and four high-dependency beds. Monaghan will get funding for 10 additional beds.
The plan, which has yet to be published, received a cautious welcome last night from the chairman of the Monaghan Hospital Alliance, Mr Peadar McMahon, who has organised many protests over the removal of maternity and other services from Monaghan Hospital.
He said he would have to study the proposals, but if the emergency room in Monaghan was to be staffed by doctors rather than nurses, it was a welcome move.