UHL cancelled 4,600 patient appointments in one three-week period in August

Sat, 05 Oct, 2024 - 01:05

Niamh Griffin, Health Correspondent

Chronic overcrowding meant 4,600 patients had operations or appointments cancelled at University Hospital Limerick during a three-week period

Figures released by Noreen Spillane, the acting chief executive at UL Hospitals Group, which includes Ennis and Nenagh hospitals, revealed that 433 endoscopies were cancelled across the three sites between August 8 and 27.

A further 1,423 day-care or in-patient procedures, which includes operations, were also cancelled across UHL’s Ennis, Nenagh, St John’s, and Croom orthopaedic hospitals.

Added to this, 2,627 outpatient appointments were cancelled during the 20-day period, including 44 at the University Maternity Hospital Limerick as well as the five other hospitals in the UHL Group.

The cancellation of appointments usually occurs when resources need to be diverted to deal with overcrowding in the emergency department.

The data was shared with Nenagh-based county councillor Seamus Morris, a member of the Regional Health Forum, West.

Ms Spillane said that by late September, 92% of the cancelled outpatient appointments had been rescheduled.

“We regret when any patient has their planned procedure or investigation cancelled,” she said.

She stressed that the treatment of patients has been gradually returning to normal levels in recent weeks, but said this can only be sustained “within available resources”.

The startling August figures were revealed after HSE regional executive officer Sandra Broderick previously estimated a far lower impact on appointments and operations from the chronic overcrowding at the hospital.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner in early September, Ms Broderick estimated the deferrals affected in the "hundreds” of patients.

On Thursday, the parents of Aoife Johnston, who died in avoidable circumstances at UHL in December 2022, said they still lack answers about her death, and described a report done for the HSE as “pointless”.

Aoife’s mother, Carol, told RTÉ’s 'Prime Time': “I know from the report and any other investigations, a lot of it goes back to overcrowding. I suppose for us, as Aoife’s parents, it’s very hard to accept that. On the night it went wrong in other ways, not just through overcrowding.”

HSE chief executive Bernard Gloster apologised again for the failings in care.

Just yesterday, there were 99 patients without a bed at UHL, according to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation.

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