Connacht Tribune
Merlin Park operating theatres are finally set to resume operations
The long-awaited new operating theatres for orthopaedic surgery at Merlin Park Hospital could be up and running within a month.
That’s what the HSE has told Galway West Independent TD Noel Grealish, with construction of the two operating theatres due to be completed by the end of March – bringing an end to a shortage of operating capacity stretching back to 2017.
“The new theatres are expected to be equipped and to be completed by the end of March 2022,” Paul de Freine, Interim National Director of the HSE Capital & Estates division, told Deputy Grealish this week in a written response to a Parliamentary Question.
“It is anticipated that a minimum of 3,000 orthopaedic procedures will be carried out in the new theatre suite initially and, depending on staffing, it is hoped this figure will increase to over 4,000 orthopaedic procedures per annum,” he added.
The new was welcomed by Deputy Grealish, who pointed out that waiting lists for orthopaedic procedures in Galway had been growing since a leaking roof forced the closure of two operating theatres at Merlin Park Hospital in September 2017.
“We have been waiting more than four and a half years for them to be replaced and in the meantime waiting lists for orthopaedic procedures have increased twice the national rate,” he said.
“We now have a total of more than 7,800 people who are on the orthopaedic waiting lists in Galway, as inpatients or outpatients, an increase of 1,340.
“An indication of how much the reduction in treatment options in Galway has affected those waiting for help is that the numbers have gone up by 21% in Galway since September 2017, compared with less than 11% in the rest of the country,” said Deputy Grealish.
“But it’s the people who have been waiting in pain for the most serious operations such as a hip operation or knee replacement who have been especially affected in Galway
“The number of these people waiting for inpatient operations in Galway has shot up by 48% over the past four and a half years, while their numbers nationally have fallen substantially, by 13%.”
The Independent TD highlighted the plight of those waiting the lost period of time to get the help they needed in Galway, with people waiting more than a year and half for orthopaedic operations as inpatients increasing by more than six times the number in 2017, shooting up from 42 back then to 282 today.
“The saddest part of this is that many of the people we are talking about here would be in the older age category, whose quality of life has been hugely affected and their ability to move about gone in many cases.”
Paul de Freine of the HSE, in his response to Deputy Grealish’s parliamentary question, outlined how €10.57m had been provided for the provision of the two new operating theatre suites and ancillary accommodation, including a scrub room, anaesthetic rooms, disposal room, recorder bay, staff changing rooms, office, kitchenette and interview room.
“The development is an upgrade and consolidation of the existing theatre service on the site. A new link corridor will link the existing hospital block to the new development. The theatres will be primarily used to orthopaedic elective surgery in Merlin Park University Hospital,” he added. The work had started in March 2021.
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
