Limerick's St John's Hospital to serve patients seeking emergency treatment

ST JOHN'S Hospital in Limerick city centre is to once again start accepting patients who are seeking emergency care in limited cases.

The hospital is to provide its existing Medical Assessment Unit (MAU) in St John's for people who have sought an ambulance.

A similar facility at Nenagh General Hospital will provide the service on this basis initially, with St John's following soon after, HSE sources have indicated.

Medical patients with a GP referral and now people brought by ambulance will be seen at the MAU in St John's, if deemed appropriate by paramedics and doctors there.

People who feel they need still emergency care are advised to continue presenting to the ED - and not St John's Hospital.

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This is being done in a bid to relieve the waiting times at the Dooradoyle hospital, which earlier this year was forced to declare an emergency incident following unprecedented overcrowding.

Following this, a protest was held in Limerick which drew 11,000 people who demanded improved public health conditions in the region.

The St John's move was confirmed by a spokesperson for the University of Limerick Hospitals Group (ULHG).

"We are pleased with the progress of this initiative to date. An evaluation involving our MAU physicians and our National Ambulance Service (NAS) partners will be necessary before a decision is made on any expansion of the service. However, we have every expectation of success for the Ennis pathway, with a view to continuing that service and, with the agreement of NAS and the HSE, expanding it to our MAUs in Nenagh and St John’s Hospitals," they said.

It means that patients will be treated in hospitals closer to their homes with less pressure on the UHL system as a result.

Elsewhere, St John's Hospital's board of management this week welcomed UHL boss Prof Colette Cowan, Prof Brian Lenehan, Joe Hoare and Prof Paul Burke to its board meeting.

They were discussing the next steps in progressing the capital development plan at the hospital, with hopes that a new 150-bed unit can open on the grounds of the facility.

LimerickLive has contacted ULHG for further comment on this.