Taoiseach hears of urgent need for ten new emergency beds at Portiuncula hospital
The need for ten additional beds to alleviate overcrowding in the emergency department at Portiuncula hospital in Ballinasloe was highlighted to An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, when he visited the facility on Friday last.
The Fine Gael leader met with the Senior Clinical Management team in the hospital who outlined how the medical teams working in the emergency department have endured their worst January in terms of patient trolley numbers. He also heard how patients attendances at the ED have doubled over the past ten years.
Senior management at the hospital have already made a submission to the HSE requesting ten additional treatment bays, and the issue has also been raised in the Seanad with Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, by Roscommon-Galway Fine Gael Senator, Aisling Dolan.
Prior to his visit to Ballinasloe on Friday, local TD, Denis Naughten called on the Taoiseach to announce the new Emergency Department for Portiuncula Hospital and said he would be visiting the "busiest and most overcrowded Emergency Department in Ireland in 2023."
Deputy Naughten said the new modular model for the ED in Ballinasloe is being considered by the government and the HSE "for the past 32 months" and added that he had personally taken the issue up with the Taoiseach in January when he pointed out that Portiuncula is now the most overcrowded Emergency Department in the country!
On his visit to Portiuncula, the Taoiseach acknowledged the pressures on the emergency department in the hospital before he was taken on a general tour of the hospital to see the new CT scanner and meet with the radiology team. He also viewed progress on the multi-million euro 50-bed ward block which is due for completion next year and will offer patients fully equipped en-suite single rooms.
12 additional beds, including eight individual en-suite rooms are due to come on stream shortly in the local hospital with the conversion of the old outpatients department, which will double the number of single rooms available to patients.
The new outpatients department in Portiuncula is set up adjacent to the existing hospital and is fully operational.
The Taoiseach spoke with a number of healthcare staff during his tour of Portiuncula Hospital and thanked the Assistant General Manager, Marguerite Dooley, and Director of Nursing, Mary Mahon, for facilitating the tour of the facilities.