Slow pace of change criticised

PROFESSOR Richard Greene, clinical director of the Cork University Hospital Group, said while he accepts criticism in relation to the slow pace of change in reforming services at Mallow General Hospital, the kind of change envisaged could not be achieved overnight.

Changes at Mallow were tied in with the entire reconfiguration of hospital services in Cork and Kerry and given the level of detail and complexity involved, it required time, he said.

Prof Greene was speaking yesterday as the Health Service Executive responded to a report published by the Health Information and Quality Authority examining the safety and quality of services at Mallow and the support arrangements provided by the HSE.