TB lab closure - Another sign of a creaking health service

THE shoddy state of disrepair at Munster’s only TB (tuberculosis) testing lab is symbolic of Ireland’s creaking health service.

Muck from building work and bad weather have forced the closure of the unit at Cork University Hospital. Housed in an ageing prefab, it has taken so long to rebuild, it has been shut down.

Cork University Hospital admits a “major deterioration in the condition of the building”. And a consultant has compared it to a third-world scenario.

At a time of growing concern about drug resistant TB, it would be hard to exaggerate the importance of having a streamlined, effective and reliable laboratory set-up.

With testing likely to be carried out in England, the danger is that the management of TB in the south will be thrown into chaos.

This amounts to yet another indictment of the health service. The long-suffering public deserves better.