Another major protest is to be held in coming weeks by Monaghan people over proposals to remove some services from their local hospital. This time the protest will take place in Dublin.
The plan got the go-ahead last night after a "negative" meeting between members of Monaghan County Council and Minister for Health Mary Harney.
Led by the council's chairman Pádraig McNally, the delegation met Ms Harney and her officials for about two hours. Ms Harney insisted changes in the way hospital services are currently organised in the northeast and at Monaghan in particular had to be made in the interests of patient safety.
However her spokesman said she stressed that no services would be removed until something better was put in place.
Mr McNally said he feared current plans to take the intensive care unit and other services out of Monaghan hospital would lead to unnecessary deaths.
"I would describe the meeting with the Minister as a negative meeting. All we heard was a rehash of what we have been told for the last number of years by the health board and now by the HSE.
"On a personal level I have huge admiration for Mary Harney but am fearful she is being sucked in by the HSE argument on what is the right way to go."
He said a blockade of the M50 planned by the Monaghan Hospital Community Alliance for yesterday was called off as a result of the Minister agreeing to meet the delegation.