Beds cut as minister arrives to open Dingle's new hospital
Dingle Hospital Chief Paramedic Pat Hanafin: 'Reduction in beds devastating for West Kerry community.'
JUST days in advance of the official opening of Dingle Hospital by Health Minister James Reilly on Friday, it was confirmed this week that six beds have been closed at the hospital.
The hospital, which was designed to have 72 beds and cost over €16m to build, opened in October 2010 with a reduced capacity of just 46 beds because it failed to meet strict HIQA requirements.
Although the HSE will not confirm the current bed cuts, Patrick Hanafin, chief paramedic at the hospital and former chairman of the Ambulance Association of Ireland, told The Kerryman this week the reduction has already happened.
This means that the new West Kerry Community Hospital actually has three beds less than the old Dingle Hospital, St. Elizabeth's, which had 43 at the time of its closure.
The move has been slammed by Mr Hanafin, who described the reduction in beds as a "devastating development for the entire West Kerry community."
"We are talking about a population of approximately 10,000 people; 40 beds will not cover that," said Mr Hanafin who added that the latest bed cuts will mean more patients being ferried to hospital in Tralee and Killarney.
"It is devastating that people will have to be sent so far away from their families and their homes," he said.
"Patient focus has been lost, this reduction is completely counter-productive, there will be nowhere for these people to go and sending them to a place 50 miles away when we have a state of the art hospital on our doorstep is completely nuts," he said.
"Many of these beds are dedicated to convalescence; sending patients to Kerry General Hospital in Tralee is also putting unnecessary pressure on staff in the A&E when all they need is here in Dingle."
Mr Hanafin touched on the issue of staff at the West Kerry Community Hospital with three full time staff and three part time staff departing this February. Sources within the hospital have indicated these staff members will not be replaced. The number of agency support staff at the hospital is also set to be cut.
Mr Hanafin has called on the community to take a stance on the issue.
"This will have a knock on effect on the entire community – this hospital cost €16.4 million and now we are looking at a situation where we will eventually cater for fewer patients than were originally housed at St. Elizabeth's," he said. "If we do not take a stand at this point, this may only be the beginning."
- MARIAN O'FLAHERTY
