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Chaos and Unsafe.
Cavan General Hospital is in chaos and has been unsafe - so much so that the management had to step in and come up with a plan to get the hospital back to a safe level of activity. Now we were not told that this problem was happening nor were GPs informed. It was all kept nice and quiet between themselves and only that a Memo to Consultants was leaked to the outside world we might never have been told. No - that is not correct - we knew it long before the leaked document. We have been told by members of staff there that it is unsafe, that there are not enough staff to cope with the demand and there are not enough beds to admit patients and that sooner or later there will be a catastrophe. But then this is all about saving money and patients can be set aside when the euro is at stake. On Friday last there were 36 patients lying on trolleys waiting for a bed and there have been huge numbers for the past number of weeks. They ran out of trolleys and had to take them from the scope room and put patients into the scope room and so they had to close the scopes and do emergency scopes in the Theatre.
This week and into next the following applies:
- All elective surgery is closed.
- All medical clinics closed.
- All medical and emergency consultants are in Cavan
- Assessment and Rehabilitation unit closed.
- All Stress test in Monaghan closed.
- Ambulance service to take patients to other hospitals if they can.
- Medical Patients may be admitted to the Surgical Ward.
- Endoscopy Unit in Cavan closed.
- Medical Endoscopy in Monaghan closed.
Now we are led to believe that this will cause little inconvenience to patients - get real boys - what world are you living in? Of course it will cause major upset, trauma, fret, worry, nervous exhaustion and depression for many and all will be set back in their hopes of getting their condition dealt with sooner. For some it may mean a delay in tests and thereby the results which could have a major outcome. Others have had their tests and now want results to put their mind at ease but that will be delayed. I have been told by one patient that he had a Clinic appointment last Friday to get results of a scan but on Thursday it was cancelled and his new appointment is on December 8th !!!
The removal of services from Monaghan has contributed in a big way to the problems in Cavan and we are urging the powers that be to re-look at the situation and make more use of the facilities in Monaghan and more especially once the CT Scanner is up and running, or is it just going to lie there like the one out the Ballybay Road? This is serious times and we have not even begun to see the ‘winter illnesses’ increase the numbers looking for medical assistance in hospitals. The problem can only get worse unless proper systems are put in place and that must include Monaghan. It is laughable if not so serious to see them asking ambulances to take patients to other hospitals. Drogheda is packed and has a similar problem. Ambulance have to wait up to 4 hours at times to get their trolleys back as they are needed in A & E - so we are told - but some staff there have described the hospital as in crisis too. However we are now to be taken to another hospital - where? - Dublin? Craigavon? or a trolley in the back of an ambulance along the side of the road?
On Tuesday, October 12th local Radio aired the problem and had a HSE representative giving the HSE spin. He fooled few with his answers. However National Radio and TV are somewhat different. I went to Carrickmacross to be interviewed by RTE and waited until they arrived at 3pm. They conducted the interview and left. An hour later I got a phone call from them to say that the interview was dropped. RTE did run with the story but gave the HSE spin and said that ‘critics’ (meaning US) were complaining. We were made out to be like terrorists committing treason. Thats what we pay our licence for and I wasted my day from 11am until 4pm and had cancelled going to the funeral of Maurice Nelligan due to the breaking story.