Patients' group calls for Government to meet Sláintecare directors

Professor Geraldine McCarthy resigned as chair of the South/SouthWest Hospital Group and cited Government failures to deliver reforms in the health service as the reason for her departure. File picture. 

A patient representatives group has called on the Government to meet with the Sláintecare directors who dramatically resigned last week in a reconciliation attempt. 

Otherwise, any future value for patients in the planned reforms may be lost in a programme that has already struggled to make progress, said Stephen McMahon, co-founder and director of the Irish Patients Association (IPA).  

We have to ask the question: how many top-level people in the organisation of the Sláintecare rollout are likely to resign? 

"We were shocked when we heard that news last week but really were not surprised. It has made very little progress," he said. 

Mr McMahon was speaking to Radio Kerry in the wake of Professor Geraldine McCarthy's resignation as chair of the South/SouthWest Hospital Group, citing Government failures to deliver reforms in the health service as the reason for her departure.

It was the latest shock resignation after Sláintecare executive director Laura Magahy and chair of the Sláintecare Advisory Council, Dr Tom Keane, left their posts last week. 

Mr McMahon said the resignations over a lack of progress could jeopardise the structural reform necessary for future investment in the healthcare system and undermine any future benefit for patients from the greater spending. 

He called on a meeting to take place between the departing officials and the Government to take place as soon as possible in order to reduce any further delay amid patients "languishing on hospital waiting lists". 

Praising the cross-party efforts to establish the programme, Mr McMahon said the Government should do more than just accept the resignation of the departing officials. 

"These people have come across issues that are fundamental in the rollout of this reform and changing people at post with a similar situation is not really going to be in the best interest of patients because of the time taken to find replacements," he said. 

Mr McMahon has concerns that a temporary shift from a dedicated executive in charge of Sláintecare to Department of Health officials, no matter how experienced, could still cause significant delays to the €3bn investment programme on elective care. 

"Why should we be losing good people because of issues that they have identified based on their experience on what the lack of progress is? 

"Let's try and get a reconciliation here and move it forward in the best interest of patients, whether they are in Kerry or Donegal or Dublin or wherever else it is," he said.