Peadar Tóibín
Question:586. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the reason that nurses are being told by management in Navan Hospital to get patients out of the emergency department (details supplied). [60414/22]
View answerTuesday, 6 December 2022
Questions (586, 587, 588, 677)
Peadar Tóibín
Question:587. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the reason that the HSE is pushing ahead with the official bypass of ambulances with patients of the accident and emergency department in Navan Hospital given that over 100,000 patients have been without a bed to date in 2022. [60415/22]
View answerPeadar Tóibín
Question:588. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the reason that the HSE is pushing ahead with closure of the accident and emergency department in Navan Hospital given that it is being opposed by the senior medics and clinicians in Drogheda Hospital, when the HSEs own data systems indicate that up to 45 patients could be forced to go to Drogheda Hospital each day, when the absence of an ICU in Navan will mean that the medical assessment unit will not be able to accept any patient who could potentially deteriorate. [60416/22]
View answerPeadar Tóibín
Question:677. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health if he will publish the report that the HSE wrote to close Navan Hospital A&E; the reason that no one has seen the report; and the reason there is secrecy around this report. [60849/22]
View answerWritten answers
As the Deputy will be aware, the HSE has proposed a process of planned service changes at Our Lady's Hospital Navan and has advised that these changes are necessary to support safe service delivery on a sustained basis and are driven first and foremost by patient safety considerations.
No decision regarding the HSE’s proposal for the transition of the Emergency Department at Navan has been agreed by me or by government.
While recognising the very real clinical concerns identified, the Government is clear that several important issues, including additional capacity in other hospitals impacted and the continued ability of people in the Navan area to access emergency and urgent care, would need to be fully addressed before any proposed transition by the HSE.
For this reason, I have asked the HSE to undertake a review of capacity. The review has been received and is currently under consideration and engagement in relation to this matter is ongoing.
From 12 December, the existing ambulance bypass protocols, in place for Our Lady’s Hospital Navan, are being updated to address urgent patient safety matters to include patients who are critically or seriously unwell, or likely to deteriorate. The current ambulance bypass protocol includes paediatric patients, obstetrics patients, major trauma patients, heart attack patients, and stroke care patients.
The HSE Winter Plan for 2022-23, published on 11 October, will support acute and community services this winter to respond to anticipated high levels of emergency attendances and admissions across the acute sector, long waiting times in EDs, and high occupancy rates across acute hospital settings.