West health services at crisis point

OUTSPOKEN Mayo HSE West Forum member Councillor Lisa Chambers has claimed health services in the region are at crisis point.

Outpatient rheumatology appointments for up to 850 people in the west have been postponed until later this year because of staff shortages.

The HSE has said a number of clinics scheduled to take place at Merlin Park Hospital in Galway have been cancelled for the summer months, a move that impacts on patients throughout the region.

Councillor Chambers hit out: 'The situation is now out of control at Merlin Park and Galway University Hospital and there is no doubt patient care has been put on the back burner while Minister for Health, Leo Varadkar, gets to grips with his department.

'All elective surgery at Galway University Hospital (GUH) has already been cancelled until the end of the month due to the volume of people presenting at the emergency department of the hospital and currently almost 1,500 people are waiting to see a consultant in Galway.

'It is clear the HSE West is completely overwhelmed and under-resourced, and in need of urgent assistance from the government. Things have gone from bad to worse in our health service since the Fine Gael government took office almost five years ago. This is particularly true for the west of Ireland, which seems to be constantly at the back of the queue for vital services.

'The reason those outpatient clinics are so important is that people with inflammatory conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis, are very often reviewed at outpatient clinics. Intervention and early treatment is seen as crucial to easing symptoms and assisting in pain management. Without these outpatient clinics people are left to suffer alone and attempt to manage their own pain.'