Cancer clinic to stop treating new public patients as HSE talks stall

A PRIVATE clinic contracted by the Health Service Executive (HSE) to provide radiotherapy services to public cancer patients in the south-east is to cease taking new referrals from May 1.

Yesterday, a spokesperson for University Pittsburgh Medical Centre (UPMC), which provides the service at the Whitfield Clinic in Waterford, said they “could be accused of reckless trading” if they continued to treat public patients in the absence of a service level agreement with the HSE.

The previous contract between the HSE and UPMC, in place since 2007, expired at the end of last year.