Limerick hospitals group to test 3,000 staff following several Covid-19 outbreaks 

Crisis Management Teams have met at the hospitals to resolve the situation. File Picture.

University Hospital Limerick Group will roll out mass testing of around 3,000 staff, after a number of outbreaks at the hospital group.

The news comes after 188 staff across the UL Hospitals Group are currently reported to be off work and self-isolating, having either tested positive for Covid-19 or been designated as close contacts, as of Friday evening.

Professor Brian Lenehan, Chief Clinical Director of UL Hospitals Group confirmed the mass testing on RTÉ radio.

“Currently, testing is adequate, and we have adequate contact tracing here in the Midwest and, in fact, from today we will be rolling out mass swabbing for all healthcare workers, within the hospital group, as a precautionary measure, for a number of reasons. 

"To identify other healthcare workers potentially, who are asymptomatic and carrying the virus, and indeed to reassure staff that they don't have Covid-19 when they get a ‘not detected’ results,” said Professor Lenehan.

Significant reductions in scheduled care at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) and Ennis Hospital were today extended for a further week, with all routine outpatient appointments and the majority of elective procedures cancelled until at least Friday, November 20.

Six wards at UHL are closed to admissions.

Outbreak control teams which have been established in both hospitals “continue to work closely with public health and occupational health colleagues and all the relevant HPSC guidance is being followed as we work to contain the virus and to protect patients and staff”, they said.

“Contact tracing and testing of staff and patients is continuing and we are putting into effect all the appropriate infection control measures to mitigate the risk." 

Today the group’s Hospital Crisis Management Team extended curtailments on scheduled care in UHL and Ennis for a further week as staff prioritised “emergency presentations and inpatients“.

This is being kept “under continuous review“.

Other hospitals in the group, including St John’s Hospital, Nenagh Hospital, University Maternity Hospital Limerick and Croom Orthopaedic Hospital we’re continuing to operate as normal.

Patients whose procedure or appointment is impacted by the cancellations are being contacted directly by the hospital in advance.

A number of services continue to operate as normal, including emergency, cancer and palliative care.

The emergency department at UHL continues to operate 24/7 for emergency cases only, and an injury unit and medical assessment unit at Ennis Hospital continue to operate.

“Separate Covid/query Covid and non-Covid pathways are in place to keep patients safe,” the spokesman said. 

“As has been the case since the start of the pandemic, patients with any symptoms of Covid-19 are asked not to attend the hospital or any healthcare facility but to phone their GP for advice."

Colette Cowan, CEO, UL Hospitals Group, said the measures were “necessary in the interests of patient and staff safety as we manage a complex situation involving multiple outbreaks“.

Prof Brian Lenehan, Chief Clinical Director, UL Hospitals Group, said, their “immediate focus is on providing a safe environment for all patients and also on supporting our staff, many of whom are now anxious for their own health and the health of their loved ones."

There were 41 patients with COVID-19 at UHL as of 8pm last night, the highest number of confirmed cases in any Irish hospital.