I spoke recently about this matter regarding Longford-Westmeath general hospital to the Minister of State's colleague, the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Martin, who visited Mullingar early in September. On that day the Minister visited all the health institutions in the town. I thank the Minister for his generosity in giving of his time on that occasion. My concern relates to the decision of the Department of Health and Children not to accept the recommendations of the project team. On Wednesday, 27 September, in the conference room at Longford-Westmeath hospital, a document was produced which was the first feedback members of the board had received from the Department regarding the contents of phase 2B. In my opinion the omission of the four-bed intensive care unit, the six-bed coronary care unit, the medical rehabilitation unit – which was to have 15 beds initially, but had a plan to expand to 25 beds subsequently – along with the day hospital, the unit for child and adolescent psychiatry, and a day services unit, was ill advised.
The day services unit is a new concept being introduced for the first time by the project team, including consultants and members of the board. This will consist of all-day services in future and will more than likely replace a number of pre-existing units in the hospital.
I find it extremely difficult to understand a proposal to add another phase to the three phases of the development of Longford-Westmeath general hospital. First, we had phase 1, followed by phase 2A, and now phase 2B, which is an unsatisfactory building. My remarks concern that particular edifice in the context of the services to be provided therein. The medical rehabilitation unit is currently situated across the road in St. Mary's Hospital, Mullingar. The consultant geriatrician, Dr. Murphy, and his staff who do a marvellous job, find it difficult at times to convince people to go to this particular facility because it is a relic of a bygone era. In my opinion it is not suitable for such services, although a great service has been provided there over the years and is still being provided. Nevertheless, when people see the building they are somewhat reluctant to go there for physiotherapy and rehabilitation generally.
The people who will lose out are members of the most vulnerable sections of our society. The child and adolescent psychiatry service has been operating in unsatisfactory conditions ever since the appointment of Dr. Antoinette Dalton about eight years ago. Her counterpart in Laois-Offaly, who was appointed after Dr. Dalton, was provided with refurbished accommodation at Portlaoise general hospital. I do not begrudge the individual concerned those facilities, but the same facilities should be made available in the Longford-Westmeath catchment area.
The day care services unit is a new item on the agenda and not one that I wish to go into now. I feel strongly that the intensive care unit, the coronary care unit, the medical rehabilitation unit and facilities for child and adolescent psychiatry should be included in phase 2B. There was never a mention of further phases in the proposal which included phase 1, phase 2A and phase 2B. I would be very unhappy if a further phase was added to the existing three phases.
Elderly patients in our catchment area are urgently in need of rehabilitation. We need an ICU with four beds and a coronary care unit with six beds. At present, we have 57 beds and when phase 2B is completed that number will increase to 93. Even with 57 beds we often have a bed occupancy of between 100 and 120. As the Minister of State knows, beds from other specialty facilities, and sometimes even maternity beds, are taken up by ordinary medical patients. This situation is far from satisfactory.
When this phase is completed, the number of surgical beds at the hospital will increase from 53 to 62. They will be made up of the following, 31 seven-day beds, 19 five-day beds and 12 day beds.
The Minister should consider what I have said. The extra facilities are imperative, not alone for the clinicians and the ancillary staff who are providing medical services in Longford-Westmeath, but especially for the patients involved. The Minister should accept the recommendations of the project team for the completion of phase 2B at Longford-Westmeath General Hospital, Mullingar.
