Corrs to back efforts to protect hospital

THE Corrs are backing efforts to ensure the hospital where they were born is not downgraded.

On Monday evening the Irish Nurses Organisation (INO) is holding a public rally in the Corrs’ home town of Dundalk demanding that key services are retained at the Louth Co Hospital.

“We have been told two of the Corrs will be attending Monday’s rally,” a spokesperson for the INO said last night.

The INO claims the North Eastern Health Board plans to downgrade three hospitals - including Louth Co Hospital - and enhance services at Cavan and Drogheda hospitals.

But a spokesperson for the health board insisted last night there was no plan to close or downgrade Louth Co Hospital.

The hospital was “guaranteed an active role in the delivery of services within the Louth/Meath hospital group,” she added.

In February 2001 maternity services were suspended at Louth County

Hospital, after a review by Comhairle na nOispideál, and moved to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda.

From the end of December the board has decided all major trauma cases in the region will go directly into Drogheda hospital. Dundalk and Navan hospitals will continue to have emergency departments.

Meanwhile, supporters of Monaghan hospital have been picketing Government buildings in Dublin for the past three weeks.

On July 2 the hospital came off-call due to a lack of anaesthetists, so accident and emergency cases were sent to hospitals in Cavan, Dundalk and Drogheda.