North Tipperary hospital crisis at boiling point with multiple local officials seeking answers

In a parliamentary question raised last month, Deputy Alan Kelly asked for the date on which the new Nenagh Community nursing home will open to residents.

The response he received this week was that “no date for this initiative has been agreed at this time”.

On this, Deputy Kelly said: “The recent response from the HSE to my parliamentary question regarding the opening of Nenagh’s Community Nursing Home is very worrying as they have no idea when they are actually going to open it.

“This is despite the fact that the HSE committed to opening it by July of this year when they made the disgraceful decision to hand it over as a step down facility for UHL and opened it as such last Summer.

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“The plan was only to have this situation in place for one winter cycle.

“It now is very concerning that the HSE have no idea when they will open the nursing home? How is this even possible? We are now in March of 2025? How can they not confirm that they are opening this unit this year even?

“It is worrying that the company Bartra who operate the step down facility continue to advertise for senior staff in the facility which means they intend to be there for some time.

“This facility is desperately needed by families in Nenagh and surrounds. I worked for years to ensure it was funded and built and I won’t stop until it is opened for those that need it’.”

Concerns in the mid-west are continuing to grow to a point of a critical urgency when it comes to the matter of overcapacity in University Hospital Limerick (UHL). The situation in UHL as well as the need for additional A&Es in the mid-west was raised several times in Dáil Éireann in the past week alone.

In a parliamentary question last week Deputy Ryan O’Meara said “The mid west is serviced by one accident and emergency department in University Hospital Limerick, UHL. It is my view that a second accident and emergency department is needed in the mid-west region.

“HIQA is currently undertaking a review into the assessment of needs for a second accident and emergency department in the mid west. North Tipperary has the capacity and the population to be served by an accident and emergency department in Nenagh.

“When do we expect the interim report from HIQA on the assessment of need for a second accident and emergency department in the mid-west region? It was expected by the end of this month.

“My second question is to ask if the Government will commit to fully implementing that report when it is published in May.”

The HIQA (Health Information and Quality Authority) report referenced by Deputy O’Meara is due to evaluate the need for another emergency department in the mid-west region. With the A&Es previously taken from Nenagh and Ennis, it is hoped that the decision from HIQA would see this move at least be partially reversed and that at least one of the A&Es be returned.
Last month, HIQA confirmed that the review will be complete in the next 90 days with an interim report published in February but there are no murmurings of said interim report as of yet.

In response to Deputy O’Meara’s question, the Taoiseach said “I cannot pre-empt what HIQA will recommend. It will depend on the recommendation because I know there is a lot of demand for additionality in the mid-west more generally.”

In a Seanad Éireann debate the following day, Limerick Senator Dee Ryan once again raised the issue saying “The situation at University Hospital Limerick is simply unacceptable. The 420,000 people in Limerick, Clare and north Tipperary must rely on one overcrowded and under-resourced emergency department.

“This morning once again, UHL has the highest number in the country of people sitting on trolleys awaiting beds. The people of the mid-west are fed up. We are fed up with the dangers our loved ones face. We are fed up with the intolerable situations and conditions that our nurses, doctors and other hospital staff are working in. We are fed up with constantly hearing for more than a decade that we have the worst hospital overcrowding in the country.

“There are nine model 4 hospitals in the country. They are top-of-the-range hospitals, with expertise and facilities to cater for large catchment areas. Is the Minister of State aware that every other model 4 hospital in the country has at least one model 3 hospital with a 24-hour emergency department supporting it? Is he aware that UHL stands alone in the country as the only model 4 hospital without a second emergency department in its catchment area supporting it? Is he aware that, of the five hospitals with increased trolley numbers in the country, UHL was the only one that saw a further increase last year and not a decline in its numbers?”

Whether it be overcrowding in UHL, the need for additional A&Es or the return of Nenagh’s Community Nursing Home, the frustration that has been prevalent in the area for years now is past boiling point and the conclusion of HIQA’s review will undoubtedly be a hot topic when it is released in the coming months.