Hospital tragedy - Death of Joe Pat Walsh an atrocity

THE grave personal tragedy of 76-year-old Pat Joe Walsh’s death in Monaghan General Hospital almost a year ago year goes to the heart of much that is wrong with the Irish health service.

It is an outrage that because of red tape, the retired farmer bled led to death before the eyes of his family in a hospital where doctors were banned from carrying out a relatively straightforward life-saving operation because the theatre closed at 5pm.

Further compounding what can only be described as an atrocity, three other hospitals in the region wrongly claimed there was no bed for him.

To say this scenario reflects badly on Ireland’s €13 billion health service is an understatement.

Not even in the poorest of Third World countries, would a patient have been allowed to die in such scandalous circumstances.