Plans to double hospital’s dialysis services facing further delays

PLANS to almost double capacity for dialysis patients at a Dublin hospital where services are already overstretched face further delays following a Government request for a value-for-money (VFM) audit.

Last night, Beaumont Hospital, which has the largest renal dialysis unit in the country, confirmed proposals to increase its 24-station unit to 44 had been put on hold following the completion of a “new business case”.

A statement from the hospital said it had been told by the Health Service Executive (HSE) that the Department of Health requires a detailed value-for-money analysis comparing Beaumont’s new unit with the alternative of buying the required capacity from the private sector.