Limerick hospital group facing €18.5m overrun

Increased spending on agency staff and the provision of 41 extra acute beds in Limerick hospitals have been cited as some of the main factors contributing to a €18.5m overspend in a Mid-West group of hospitals.

The latest performance figures from the HSE show that hospital waiting lists are increasing and that Limerick’s University Hospitals have incurred a net expenditure of €155m at the end of July, which is a 5.6% increase on last year.

UL Hospitals operates as a single group and includes hospitals across six sites: University Hospital Limerick, University Maternity Hospital, Croom Hospital, Ennis Hospital, Nenagh Hospital and St John’s Hospital Limerick.

According to the HSE, the activity and finances can only be viewed in that context.

As a result of service reconfiguration, which was implemented over a number of years, all acute medical and surgical patients are treated in UHL, where the only 24-hour Emergency Department (ED) for the entire Mid-West is located.

There have been significant developments in the hospitals including the development of a new Critical Care Block and increased bed capacity of 21 beds in UHL and 20 beds in St John’s Hospital, which were developed to alleviate pressures in ED as a result of significant increase in ED attendances.

The hospital group has also had ongoing challenges in attracting and retaining medical staff. As a consequence it has incurred significant costs associated with agency staff in order to ensure service continuity.

The changes in income legislation are also having an adverse effect on some sites because of the revised rates for day case procedures.

Other hospitals are facing similar challenges, which was anticipated in the 2014 service plan.

According to the HSE, the acute hospital sector nationally is reporting a deficit and hospitals are facing the same challenges relating to income shortfalls and substantial increases in medical agency costs which relate to the recruitment of non consultant hospital doctors.

The scale of the challenge is significant and was predicted in the 2014 Service Plan.

“An assessment of the 2014 year end position is being carried out in conjunction with the National Director for Acute Hospitals. Plans that are being developed to reduce the financial deficit while delivering safe patient care are included in this assessment,” the HSE stated.