The HSE has proposed downgrading South Tipperary General Hospital.
As a recent user of the excellent A&E for both myself and many family members, I am totally against this.
If our services are transferred to Waterford or Kilkenny, lives will be lost.
The HSE propose ceasing the following services:
- Accident and Emergency Services
- General Surgery Services
- Maternity Services - No more Tipp born children
- Gynaecology Services
- Paediatric / Children Services
- Cardiology
- Coronary Care Unit
- Acute Psychiatric Unit (closure announced)
This is the main hospital for all of South Tipperary.
If these services cease, then A&E will be up to one hour away.
Not necessary, not sensible.
If, like me you disagree with this proposal, you can:
· Join the rally on Saturday 27th March.
Meet at South Tipperary General Hospital at 3pm and march to the Main Guard
· Sign the Petition supporting the retention of our Acute Hospital Services
· Text save to 086 0202247
· Ask your family, friends, employer, employees, trade union, clubs, community and voluntary organisations to object to this awful H.S.E. plan.
· Contact your T.D.s, Senators and Local Councilors.
Act now. Do not leave it too late.
Hope to see you on the march on Saturday, 3pm at South Tipp General Hospital.
The problem is we are dealing with a minister who is ideologically opposed to the state providing services that the private sector could provide. Her vision is a skeleton public health service located in ~10 centres around the country (Galway, Waterford, Limerick, 2 in Cork and the remainder will be within a short commute of her home in Dublin). Anyone seeking the medical treatment paid for by their taxes will have to travel to one of those centres. She may be open to a triage A&E in isolated areas like Letterkenny etc but that will largely depend on what the private health providers tell her they can make from selling insurance in these captive markets.
ReplyDeleteThe other hospitals will be closed and where possible sold off. In some cases it will be her friends in the private medical industry who will take up the running of certain hospitals (she left them down badly when the taxbreaks on co-location were abolished and now needs to show something for their faith in her). These private hospitals will operate on a US model of you provide a valid insurance number at the door or you can die on the street. Given it's location and the insanity of closing it Clonmel is a strong candidate to fall into this category and it is likely that a private health provider already has it earmarked. Ennis would be another for this. Others, such as Nenagh, will be mothballed until the property market turns up and then one of the developers bailed out by NAMA will move in. Remember these hospitals usually occupy large prime slots in the heart of towns and so will be the first to benefit from any upturn in the property market. The galway tent brigade will be desperate to get their hands on these.
I'm afraid the only hope for Clonmel is if Harney is fired in the upcoming reshuffle. If not then it's doomed to be privatised.
Strange that as the US is changing it's model to more general healthcare for all, our politicians seem committed to dragging us in the opposite direction.
ReplyDeletePerhaps she will be "reshuffled", but will it change the HSE policy?
March at 3pm this Saturday. See you there.