A new study into hospital capacity in the midwest has found that a new 350-bed hospital is needed in Ennis to serve the needs of Co Clare and reduce overcrowding at University Hospital Limerick.
The study was conducted by Ennis-based academic and researcher Sinéad Madden, in response to a call by Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly for insights into severe overcrowding at UHL.
"We find that if you take Clare out of the system, that will leave Co Limerick fit for purpose for its own population," she told RTÉ Radio's News at One.
"We’d need a 350-bed new hospital in Ennis for acute care."
She said these figures were conservative, based on the national average of bed to population ratio - and added that "our national average is half the EU."
Clare has a population of 127,000, and Ennis is the sixth largest town in Ireland.
The study comes as a HIQA report on hospital needs in Ireland’s midwest region is due to be released in 2025.
Currently counties Limerick, Clare and Tipperary rely on one Emergency Department and Model 4 hospital in Limerick. A Model 4 hospital provides critical care services, such as emergency cardiology.
"You have to look at west Clare," Ms Madden said, adding that some areas are over 75 kilometres away from Limerick.
"Remote areas like Kilrush and Kilkee are comparable with Nenagh and may require a Model 2 or 3 facility to reduce further pressure on Ennis and UHL."
Since 2020, the study found, 85% of new bed allocations have been assigned to Co Limerick, leaving only 9.6% for Clare.
Patient challenges
Caroline Piggot - a cancer patient living in Ennis - said she would ask election candidates to push for more transport options for patients needing vital chemo or radiation treatments.
"I’ve to go Limerick. I am stage 4 so I’m in and out a good bit," she told News at One. "Radiation is every day, five days a week."
Like patients across Clare, Ms Piggot does not want to have to ask family members to take time off work to bring her to UHL and back.
"Now I get volunteer lifts with the Clare Cancer Support Group in Kilnamona," she said. "It’s way better. They go above and beyond for you."
Ms Piggot said politicians need to know the extra worry placed on patients who need to travel from rural areas to UHL.
"If you don’t have a lift to radiation, I don’t know what a person is supposed to do."
More services needed in Ennis
Ennis Hospital currently has an injuries unit for burns or broken bones and step-down beds, but locals are still annoyed over the closure of the emergency department, in 2009.
"We’ve a hospital here and we’ve no access to it," said one woman. "It’s a disgrace."
Another man said: "A very good friend of mine spent six days on a trolley in Limerick with pneumonia and no shower. It’s not the people that work there, it’s just that it’s overcrowded."
Nurses call for safe staffing
The INMO has again called for mandatory safe staffing at UHL. Trolley figures in the hospital, located in Dooradoyle, are consistently among the highest in the country.
"Today like every other day in UHL, we are understaffed and there are people on trolleys," said Ann Noonan, INMO representative at the hospital.
She said staff in UHL were "really hard working" and really care for patients.
"The media attention on UHL has really affected staff in the last two years. We totally understand the difficulties of families and patients trying to access services."
After 40 years on the job, ED nurse Ann Noonan has seen countless reports and quick fixes. She said it is now time for legislation mandating safe numbers of staff.
"I started in October 1984 and can see the detrimental effect on staff and patients, the fact that the safer-staffing model is not implemented. You cannot expect somebody to come in every single day and do the job of two and three people."
Pharmacies want to do more
Persistent overcrowding at UHL has a spill over-effect on GPs and pharmacies across the Midwest.
"A lot of people tend to use the pharmacy as a free triage service," said Niall O’Sullivan, who has a number of pharmacies in Limerick, including one that opens until 11pm.
"If you want to see a specific GP it might take two weeks to see one. We’ve to decide if we can treat them locally or send them to the out-of-hours on-call service."
Mr O'Sullivan said pharmacists in other jurisdictions have access to patients' records and are able to write prescriptions and make some simple diagnoses.
Pharmacies here could provide more services but would need proper reimbursement, he said.
"Start by paying the pharmacists what they are paying for the medication, the 100% cost price. The fee income needs to be addressed as well," he said.
Mr O'Sullivan said more use should be made of the skill sets today’s pharmacists have.
