Hospital’s elderly care unit to close over festive season

SPENDING cuts and staff embargoes have forced Nenagh General Hospital in Co Tipperary to close its elderly care unit over Christmas and the new year, said Labour’s Senator Alan Kelly.

“What is particularly poignant about this news is that it is happening at the doorstep of this Government’s Minister for the Elderly, Máire Hoctor,” said Mr Kelly.

The senator said a number of people from the area had contacted him to express their concern.

And, he said, while staff at the hospital should be allowed to take time off at this time of year, patient welfare should not be put at risk, especially those who are elderly and more vulnerable.

Mr Kelly said he had spoken to the manager of the hospital who outlined the circumstances that he found himself in.

While he had some sympathy for the manager because of the environment within which he was left to work, it was unacceptable.

“Nenagh Hospital has not even got the required budget allocation to run what should be its day to day services in 2008,” he said.

But a spokesperson for the Health Service Executive accused Mr Kelly of making “much ado about nothing”.

Closing the unit from December 21 and re-opening it on January 3 was simply good housekeeping and it was not the first time that it had happened. The spokesperson said people did not like going into hospital over Christmas and, as a result demand for beds and theatre space dropped.

“Nursing, hospital and clinical management decided that it was not necessary to keep this unit open as there will be vacant beds elsewhere in the hospital,” he said.

He said the decision allowed resources to be used more efficiently and for them to be in a better position to deal with increased demand when it arose.

Meanwhile, a volunteer transport scheme that has been providing cars and ambulances for patients in the south east attending Whitfield Clinic in Waterford for radiotherapy has received €10,000 from the Irish Cancer Society.

South east radiotherapy trust, which has been providing the patient transport service since July 2006, has completed 1,000 patient trips.

It is intended to extend the service to include patients from north Tipperary travelling to Waterford and patients from north Wexford, Carlow and Kilkenny travelling to St Luke’s Hospital in Dublin.

Consultant surgeon at Waterford Regional Hospital and chairman of the trust, Mr Ronald Watson, said every effort had to be made to make the cancer experience more comfortable for patients.

It is planned that radiotherapy services will be available in Waterford Regional Hospital by 2011. The hospital has also been designated as one of the eight centres of excellence for cancer care.