Announcement of solution to overcrowding at UHL expected this week

The 96-bed block at University Hospital Limerick  opened earlier this year and another under construction.  Picture: David Raleigh

Health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill is expected to announce this week which solutions she will bring forward to fix the overcrowding crisis in University Hospital Limerick (UHL).

She was offered three options by Hiqa in September including: expanding UHL capacity (option A), building an elective hospital nearby (option B), or building an additional hospital with an emergency department (option C).

Patient advocate John Wall said a "once in a life-time opportunity" now exists to end the devastating overcrowding and ensure tragic deaths are not repeated.

Mr Wall is a cancer survivor and member of the HSE midwest regional patient and service user council which met the minister and local politicians recently.

“People have died as a result of the conditions that exist and we owe it to those people and their families not to have this happen again,” he said.

"For the staff also, they are doing their best and facing those challenges every day and every night.” 

His hopes rest in the hard-hitting Hiqa report and said it would be “inconceivable” for the options not to be acted upon.

There is an opportunity now, a once in a lifetime opportunity.

The council’s view is option A is underway with a 96-bed block recently opened and another under construction.

“I’m an out-patient at UHL, the last time I was there I could not physically get in,” he said. “I was 45 minutes waiting, queuing to get into the car-park.” 

He was late for his appointment as were many others, including some who parked in a rush in places later needed by construction workers to access the site.

“Everyone was very courteous, very respectful but this all adds to the stress for patients,” he said, pointing out staff face similar issues.

The council feels option B should be a greenfield site with potential to develop option C there.

This, he explained, is referred to locally as ‘A plus B equals C’.

A key concern is avoiding arguments over locations whether that is Limerick, Clare, or Tipperary.

“If we get hung up on locations, we will end up talking about this in 20 years’ time,” the Clare man said.

Costed delivery plan by April 2026

The council supports a letter sent by politicians in the region to the minister calling for a site to be urgently identified with a costed delivery plan by April 2026.

“We cannot play politics with this,” he said, adding there should be investment in ambulance services and community services too.

Mr Wall is also keenly aware elective hospitals announced for neighbouring Cork and Galway in 2022 are now expected to be only at shovel-ready status by 2030.

He called for any decisions this week about Limerick to be “up and running” quickly, adding: “There is no reason for that not to happen.” 

Meanwhile the Midwest Hospital Campaign has expressed frustration at a “disjointed” political response to the Hiqa report.

“The people of this region, who have carried the burden of inadequate services and led the campaign for safe, accessible healthcare deserve full transparency,” a spokeswoman said.

“They deserve to be informed. And, crucially, they deserve to be heard.” 

The campaign is now running a survey to canvas the public on what they want next.