‘Public patients the losers’ in Sláintecare plan

Anaesthetists in one of Cork’s main hospitals have warned that the Government’s proposal to remove private practice from public hospitals would result in a deterioration in care to patients.

The Department of Anaesthesiology in the South Infirmary-Victoria University Hospital claims one of the key proposed changes of Sláintecare, the programme to reform the healthcare system, would have “significant, serious, long-term and unforeseen adverse effects” on its public patients.