Health crisis - Martin must act on offer of surgical unit

GIVEN that the Government can be accused of stalling for three years on a US offer to provide a free neurosurgery unit for the west of Ireland, it’s no wonder the health service is in crisis.

In the eyes of people living on the western seaboard, this is yet another example of the Government’s neglect of outlying communities.

The delay is all the more frustrating as there are only two such units in Ireland, one at Beaumont Hospital in Dublin and the other at Cork University Hospital.

Effectively, this means there is no alternative for people in an area stretching from Donegal to Leitrim but to make the long journey to Dublin for specialist treatment.

It is scandalous that Irish-American neurosurgeon Professor Patrick Kelly of New York University has received no reply to his magnanimous gesture to present Galway University Hospital with a facility worth $4m. Dr Kelly, whose mother came from Galway, received a commitment that the manufacturers would install a gamma laser knife, a form of bloodless surgery for tumours and other disorders.

Is it any wonder he is mystified by the Government’s attitude, especially since the west of Ireland has no unit of this kind, a point underlined by his representative, Pat O’Dwyer.

Characteristically, in a system where crunch decisions are as rare as hens’ teeth, the Department of Health passed the buck to Comhairle na nOspidéal, which is currently reviewing national neurosurgical services but is not due to report until next spring.

Given the urgency of a decision, and considering the lack of facilities in the west, there should be no hesitation about accepting this offer. Unfortunately, departmental bureaucracy and medical politics, which bedevil the health service, are to blame for the interminable delay.

There are compelling arguments in favour of providing this important equipment in the west. In an emergency, two hours is the maximum delay in moving a patient over land for neurosurgery. For many in the west, the ambulance journey to Dublin would take much longer.

Furthermore, the 850,000-strong population of the catchment area lends weight to the demographic case for a neurosurgery unit at Galway.

Irish-Americans had offered $1 million towards the operation of the unit intended for Galway. But following the September 11 atrocity, US charities are increasingly competing for funds.

The offer hinges on capital funding to include a neurosurgical unit in the current phase-two development at Galway as local campaigners demand. The proposal also has the backing of the Western Health Board. But because of the delay, the offer is now “hanging by a thread”, according to Ms Dwyer.

The stark question is why a Government department strapped for cash, and a State agency responsible for overseeing a creaking hospital system, should be so reluctant to accept this generous gift from Dr Kelly.

Given the scale of the crisis ravaging the health service, Ireland can ill afford the luxury of turning down such a gesture. It is time Health Minister Mícheál Martin ordered his officials to stop procrastinating and accept this generous offer without further delay. The buck stops at his desk.