EDITORIAL: There has to be a better way to get hospitals built
A new Limerick Cancer Centre is in Ballygrennan, Moyross and has been developed by Whitebox
THE headline on a story in this week’s Limerick Leader reads “New cancer centre built within 18-month period” (read story below).
At a time when people can wait that long, and longer, for a healthcare appointment, the headline certainly catches the eye.
And that's before we think about how long the people of Limerick may have to wait for the new hospital campus in Raheen, which is intended to ease the pressure on University Hospital Limerick.
The 30,000 sq ft facility at Ballygrennan, Moyross, which has yet to open, was completed by Whitebox and will be operated in a joint venture involving UPMC and Bon Secours.
Its completion raises interesting questions about how we deliver major healthcare projects in this county and country.
The State already relies on private construction companies to build public hospitals, while public-private partnerships and leasing arrangements are also used to deliver other healthcare facilities.
But are there more lessons to be learned from the private sector that could help deliver major public healthcare projects more quickly and at better value for taxpayers?
Could the best of the public and private sectors come together to play an even greater role in delivering the hospitals and other healthcare facilities this region so badly needs?
Of course, private developments are not immune to delays or cost overruns either, and there is no silver bullet for the challenges within the health service. But there has to be merit in examining different approaches to getting major projects off the ground and completed within a faster timeframe.
We should be willing to learn from what works, regardless of which sector is responsible, while ensuring that public money is spent wisely. The longer these much-needed facilities take to be completed the longer people are left waiting for the care they need.