Dear Sir,
WE write as a concerned group of GPs in the Dundalk and north Louth area. It is our opinion that the proposed changes to the services at our local hospital will be detrimental to patient safety and quality of care.
In particular, the proposal that the A&E department will eventually become a minor injuries unit is of particular concern. The removal of acute medical and surgical services is equally concerning.
We would be of the opinion this so called transformation exercise is purely in the interest of cutting costs which seems to be the only concern of HSE managers.
In the event of a medical or surgical emergency in the Dundalk or north Louth area, the transit time even with good paramedical backup is between 30 to 60 minutes. This would mean that the so called 'golden hour' is greatly diminished and therefore the patients chance of survival is also diminished.
Dundalk is a very large town by national standards and may achieve city status in the near future. It is also a Gateway under the National Development Plan. Therefore this, together with the concern of patient safety and care, makes it all the more imperative that there is a fully functioning A&E Department with acute medical and surgical backup.
We would further be of the view that services at the Lourdes Hospital are not sufficiently developed in order to facilitate the move of A&E services to that site.
It appears to us that the new A&E will not be fully staffed due to the embargo on health service recruitment and that bed capacity is not sufficient to backup the increased activity in the A&E.
Finally, we note there has been no meaningful liaison, consultation or debate between us and the HSE on this matter.
Yours truly,
Dr John McKeown, Dr Bart Cullen, Dr Declan Connolly, Dr Noeleen Managan, Dr Pascal Malone, Dr Sarah O 'Brien, Dr Patrick Byrne, Dr Paul McCarthy, Dr Paul O'Reilly, Dr Larry Curtin, Dr Fiona Henry, Dr Shane O'Neill, Dr John Whatley, Dr John Kennedy, Dr Prasad Nataragan, Dr Abba Baran.
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