Thousands protest against plans to move hospital's acute services
THOUSANDS of people protested in Clonmel yesterday against plans by the HSE and the Government to move the provision of accident and emergency and other vital acute services from South Tipperary General Hospital.
The proposed moves, which are being pushed by the HSE as part of its "reconfiguration" of hospital services nationally, have provoked deep anger among the people of Tipperary and surrounding counties coming as they do less than three years after the 270-bed South Tipperary Hospital first opened at a cost of €45m to the taxpayer. Currently, the hospital serves a population base of some 150,000.
According to official statistics, the newly opened facility dealt with 33,600 A&E admissions, 4,500 day cases and 1,364 births last year alone. Speaking to the Sunday Independent, consultant general at the hospital, Peter Murchan, called for South Tipperary General's full range of acute services to be maintained. He said: "I've spent my life looking after my patients here. I've worked in the US, the UK and Ireland.
"It beggars belief that Minister Harney herself, and the former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, came down here on his last election campaign trail to see the place.
"Both they and the CEO of the HSE, Brendan Drumm, were very complimentary. But a small, core group in the HSE and the Department of Health have said they need to reconfigure services.
"They don't take cognisance of the fact all the hospitals they are dealing with have big communities that are deserving of proper services," Mr Murchan said.
The preservation of acute services at the hospital is poised to become a key political issue for Taoiseach Brian Cowen this Tuesday with outspoken local Fianna Fail TD Mattie McGrath intent on raising the matter with him personally.
- RONALD QUINLAN
Originally published in
