Patients in north-east in dire need of new hospital, doctors say

PATIENTS in the north-east are in dire need of a new, centrally located hospital, but instead services have been downgraded and there have been multiple patient deaths, doctors said yesterday at the Irish Medical Organisation’s AGM in Kerry.

Condemning the “continuing haphazard restructuring of the region’s hospital services and the consequent negative effect on patient health outcomes”, GPs from the north-east called for a new tertiary referral hospital on a greenfield site to compliment existing services.

They said there had been multiple patient deaths in the north-east because of the withdrawal of services. Most recently, the Health Service Executive (HSE) placed restrictions on the type of surgery which can now take place at Navan hospital. All upper gastrointestinal surgery must now be referred elsewhere.