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20 Mar 2026

Sligo-Leitrim TD calls for department to 'get its act together' after five surgeries cancelled in Sligo hospital

Sligo-Leitrim TD Eamonn Scanlon has called on the department to give clarity on when it would deliver new surgical wards

Sligo-Leitrim TD calls for department to 'get its act together' after five surgeries cancelled in Sligo hospital

Reporter:

Eoin Gallagher

20 Mar 2026 1:33 PM

Sligo-Leitrim TD Eamonn Scanlon has called on the Department of Health to sign off on two new surgical wards in Sligo General Hospital following the cancellation of surgeries due to the condition of the current wards.

The deputy has said that there have been at least five surgeries cancelled in the past month at the hospital.

“The situation in relation to the delay of sign-off from the Department is causing a lot of undue stress.”
“This disruption came only weeks after surgeries had resumed following a suspension in December caused by bed pressures and earlier leaks.”

He also claimed that leaks from the theatre roof and failures in radiator pipework have forced the closure of the orthopaedic theatre in recent months.

“These failures have led to the cancellation of hip and knee replacement surgeries, leaving patients in pain for procedures that should be routine,” he said.

The calls were made during members' questions in the Dáil yesterday, where he asked Deputy Jim O'Callaghan, Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, who said that he would put it to the Minister for Health.

O'Callaghan replied that “every effort would be made to fast-track the surgical hubs”, but that design teams still needed to be assembled and suggested it would be at least April before that was completed.

Deputy Scanlon has said that “The Department needs to get its act together here”. Adding that Sligo now has some of the longest orthopaedic waiting times in the country, and patients in the region are among the worst affected nationally.

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