Hospitals need more resources - Portlaoise hospital downgrading

FOLLOWING the tragic deaths of five babies at the regional hospital in Portlaoise, it was inevitable the status of what should be one of the most crucial health centres in the Midlands would be downgraded. That was clear from the damning report on an investigation carried out by Hiqa, the Health Information and Quality Authority, into those heartbreaking disasters.

Having pointed the finger of blame squarely at those responsible for running the hospital in recent years, the demotion now taking place was inescapable. So, the HSE is transferring all complex surgery to St James’s Hospital in Dublin or the Midland Regional Hospital in Tullamore, while services which do not have enough patients to support them will be discontinued, with emergency department hours being reduced to a daytime service between 8am to 8pm.

Behind these far-reaching changes, the report depicted a scenario in which, as Health Minister Leo Varadkar put it, patients were not treated with the respect, care, and compassion they had every right to expect in the hour of their greatest need. On occasion, he said, patient safety and quality came second to other interests at the hospital, whether these were institutional, corporate, staff or political. To make matters even worse, not a glimmer of compassion shown to some of the women who lost their children at the hospital.

Characterised by a chronic lack of professional teamwork at the local hospital, it is fair to say that like many another Irish town, Portlaoise could be a dangerous place in which to fall ill. To his credit, after reading the searing pages of the Hiqa report, Mr Varadkar, a former GP, has at least lived up his promise of devising an action plan for the hospital.

Not surprisingly, these changes have been criticised by local hospital supporters and condemned by politicians. Clearly, however, widespread change is needed if patient safety is to be enhanced, not just at Portlaoise but across the health service. Among the problems facing the hospital, for instance, it is claimed not enough patients are going through the surgery department to justify a full service while its emergency department is understaffed, the latter scenario replicated in most regional and central hospitals in Ireland.

It is inevitable that similar issues will be found at other hospitals. Indeed, as we have seen over the years, there is considerable cause for concern in many of them. As a result, successive governments have made a case for concentrating costly services in centres of excellence. Arguably, that might well be the way to go. There many examples of government action going wrong, including the appalling case of dumping psychiatric patients from institutions onto the streets of cities and towns under the guise of community action.

It is essential, therefore, for the resources to be put in place so that hospitals to which patients are transferred are functioning properly, adequately staffed, and with an ambulance service that’s fit for purpose. There is little to be gained by moving sick people from Portlaoise to Tullamore if it means swamping overstretched services at the hospital there. If that happens, everyone loses, especially the patient.

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