A delegation of Consultants and GPs in Donegal have described a meeting with the Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill as "really constructive" and "informative", where they discussed Letterkenny University Hospital and the location of a planned surgical hub in the north west.
Regional HSE management has identified a site in Sligo as the sole preferred option for a new surgical hub in the north west region - a decision criticised by Donegal based clinicians.
The meeting was arranged in response to a letter, signed by 171 clinicians in Donegal that called on the Minister for Health to pause and review the HSE decision.
In a statement, the Donegal clinicians said Minister Carroll MacNeill has agreed to meet again in a fortnight to discuss the issues raised after both sides have time to reflect and to gather further information.
The clinicians said they presented the Minister with data including details on geography, population, demographics, day case numbers and staffing numbers.
Fanad based GP, Dr Pádraig McGuinness, who previously said the decision to overlook LUH ignored "both population need and geographical logic", said the one-hour meeting with Minister Carroll MacNeill was "really constructive".
"She was clearly in listening mode and was clearly interested in Letterkenny University Hospital. She went through the data with us and we answered her questions. It was a very informative meeting for both sides," he said.
Dr McGuinness said the delegation was "really impressed by this Minister and look forward to working with her to improve LUH".
"We are also looking forward to meeting her again shorty to continue our dialogue and to discuss progressing the surgical hub for the north west".
Consultant Anaesthetist Dr Louise Moran said the Minister "is clearly very data driven and had spent time researching the situation at LUH".
"As evidence-based clinicians, we really welcome that approach, as all we are asking for is a level playing field when compared against patients across the country.
"We are simply asking for a clear comparison of the data across the hospitals and for the best evidence-based decision to be made for all the people across the north west," Dr Moran said.
What is the HSE surgical hubs strategy?
Over the next two years, the HSE plans to open six surgical hubs nationwide to reduce patient waiting times.
Surgical hubs follow a set model for day case surgery and minor procedures. They each consist of two operating theatres and two minor procedure rooms for non-complex procedures.
It is anticipated they will have capacity to deliver 10,000-day case procedures and 18,500 outpatient consultations per year.
The first surgical hub officially opened in south Dublin under the governance of St James's Hospital in February.
Within the next two years, the HSE plans to open five further surgical hubs in north Dublin, Galway, Cork Waterford and Limerick.
It is hoped hospitals will have greater capacity for patients who require emergency and complex care when day case procedures are treated in the surgical hubs.
The Programme for Government contains a commitment to explore the provision of an additional surgical hub in the north west.
The HSE West and North West has prepared a business case supporting the implementation of a North West Surgical Hub.
Within that business case, a greenfield site owned by the HSE in Sligo has been identified as a potential development location for a hub.
A feasibility and master planning study will also be undertaken if the business case is approved.
A spokesperson for HSE West and North West previously told RTÉ News that LUH requires a stand-alone facility which provides a greater level of services and that an Ambulatory (non-inpatient) Centre was planned.
They said the centre would include "all the additional surgical capacity being provided by the proposed surgical hubs being created elsewhere, such as theatres and treatment rooms for day surgery treatments".
In their letter to the Minister for Health two weeks ago, the Donegal-based clinicians said while any investment in LUH is welcome, they felt the ambulatory centre proposal lacked "the ring-fenced funding, defined scope, staffing allocations, and delivery timeline associated with the surgical hub model".
They said they feared the ambulatory care centre proposal was "being used to deflect from the pressing need for LUH to be considered equitably in the current surgical hub decision".
