'Not enough privacy': Patient insights into Limerick hospitals published

TAOISEACH Leo Varadkar and Minister for Health Simon Harris have launched extensive patient insights into Limerick hospitals this Monday morning. 

Since May last, thousands of patients across the Mid-West have shared their personal experiences with University Hospital Limerick, Croom Orthopaedic Hospital and St John’s Hospital, through the National Patient Experience Survey initiative. 

According to a summary report of patients’ experience at UHL, the area that needed improvement was privacy.

It states that 56% of patients felt they “were not always given enough privacy when being examined or when treated in the emergency department”. 

Eight-three percent of patients waited more than six hours to be admitted to a ward, the report states. More than 40% of patients said that they did not always have time to talk to a doctor during examination at UHL. 

Forty-two percent of patients were “not fully informed about potential side effects to watch for at home”, when it came to being prescribed medication. 

The average age of survey participants was 64, 48% of whom were female and 52% were male. 

A total of 1,457 patients took part in the survey at UHL. 

Patient experieneces at St John’s Hospital and Croom Hospital can be viewed on the National Patient Experience Survey website. 

For more, pick up this week’s Limerick Chronicle and the weekend broadsheet edition of the Limerick Leader.