Surgical services at Limerick hospital see €850K boost

AN EXPANSION to University Hospital Limerick’s busy surgical day services is expected to cost the Dooradoyle facility around €850,000, the Limerick Leader has learned.

In late February, the HSE advertised a tender notice for reorganisation works of UHL’s surgical assessment, pre-operative assessment and day of surgery admission spaces.

An average of 82 patients per week attend these services, a spokesperson for the UL Hospitals Group said.

Once the works are completed, more patients can be surgically assessed outside the emergency department. The new works also mean that patients will be able to be admitted on the morning of the surgery, where traditionally admissions had to occur the evening prior to surgery at UHL.

Last week, it was announced that the new emergency department at UHL will provide enhanced access to diagnostics, thanks to an €18m investment for a myriad of medical resources.

The new department will feature a “state-of-the-art” mobile CT scanner that will provide enhanced images, and will enable rapid access to the services at UHL.

According to UHL emergency medicine consultant, Dr Gareth Quin, this is “the most significant diagnostic innovation” in the new department, and that it is the first of its kind in Ireland.

Four additional radiographers will be recruited to support radiology services, which will have two digital X-ray rooms with the most modern equipment, a spokesperson for the UL Hospitals Group stated.

UL Hospitals chief executive Colette Cowan, welcoming the announcement, said that the services in the new department will “help minimise delays for patients and spare them the inconvenience of trips to and from the radiology department.

“Having state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment within the ED will be of enormous benefit to our patients in easing their journey through the hospital and improving their experience while in the ED,” she said.

It is hoped that the new emergency department will open on May 29.