HSE denies ‘secret’ plan to downgrade Portiuncula

Two public hospitals in Ballinasloe and Roscommon will be downgraded by stealth through amalgamation, according to secret internal documents.

The Health Service Executive (HSE) West denies it plans to amalgamate Roscommon and Portiuncula hospitals but Independent Deputy Denis Naughten insists that is exactly what is in the pipeline.

Setanta Communications, the private public relations company retained by HSE West, issued a statement on behalf of the hospitals rejecting Deputy Naughten’s claims.

“There are no plans as claimed by the Deputy to amalgamate Roscommon Hospital and Portiuncula Hospital into one hospital,” it said.

Roscommon and Portiuncula are within the Saolta University Health Care Group, which includes several hospitals in the West of Ireland.

However, Deputy Naughten says Saolta is ‘playing with words’ and effectively it plans to amalgamate services at the two hospitals, which equates to downgrading.

Deputy Naughten says internal briefing documents confirm his fears that the two hospitals will be downgraded through amalgamation.

They will be renamed, and become one hospital, straddled over two sites, with certain services diminished in one or both of the sites, he claims.

“The hospitals group and HSE has a track record of denying things and then when it turns out they are true they are forced to abandon them. They have a track record of denying. I have a track record in relation to Roscommon and Portiuncula and my track record has turned out to be true,” insisted Deputy Naughten, rejecting the hospitals’ assurances.

Commenting on the internal document, Naughten said: “While it may seem from the outside that this proposal is just a way to streamline the co-operation between both hospitals, it must be remembered that the previous amalgamations have led to a planned downgrading of services at Portiuncula and Roscommon Hospitals.

“Firstly, we were told that the establishment of the Galway/Roscommon University Hospital group would protect A&E services at both Roscommon and Portiuncula Hospitals. Instead Roscommon A&E has been closed and Portiuncula A&E is not presently capable of dealing with many time critical emergencies, such as strokes. Then we were told that the new West-Northwest Hospital Group (now Saolta) would strengthen the long term viability of our hospitals, but one of the first actions taken was to draw up a plan to downgrade the maternity service at Portiuncula Hospital. Now we have a secret plan to amalgamate both hospitals, which I believe is worrying.”

He added: “It is now time for the Department of Health and hospital group management to outline exactly what are its plans for both Portiuncula and Roscommon Hospitals, instead of developing plans behind closed doors.

“Is it now the case that posts currently vacant, such as the geriatrician post in Portiuncula, will not now happen because there is a geriatrician at Roscommon Hospital? Will this mean Roscommon be left without new appointments if there is already a similar post in Portiuncula?

“My fear is that the service to patients will fall between two stools and that HIQA will then come in and say that neither the service in Roscommon nor Portiuncula is safe, which will lead to the closure of services at one or both hospitals. This is what we have seen to date with the amalgamation of hospitals into groups and in light of the fact that this is yet another ‘behind closed doors plan’, my fear is that this will just be more of the same.”

In its statement rejecting the TD’s claims, Setanta Communications on behalf of Saolta said: “Over recent years we have enhanced the service integration between these two hospitals with joint clinical appointments.

“We have also enhanced the linkage of both hospitals to Galway University Hospitals. These linkages have real practical benefits for our patients including improving access times, efficient transfer of clinical data and so on. Roscommon and Portiuncula have become more integrated within the Saolta Group as they both and the other hospitals in the Group operate under a single board and management structure.

“As part of the Saolta identity, the hospitals’ names may be developed to emphasise the link to the group’s academic partner, NUI Galway, but local identity will remain the dominant identity.

“There are no plans to downgrade any services in the Emergency Department in Portiuncula Hospital or in any other hospital within the Saolta University Health Care Group.”