Portiuncula revamp will help tackle Galway hospital crisis

Plans to replace a 50-bed ward block at Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe will be lodged this December, the Connacht Tribune has learned.

The design for the replacement works, to include two wards of 25 single en-suite accommodation blocks will be lodged with planners within weeks.

The current lay-out of the ward, and the lack of isolation facilities, has limited the hospital’s ability to deal with recent outbreaks of infectious disease at Portiuncula.

General Manager of Portiuncula Hospital, Chris Kane, has confirmed there was a spike in the number of cases of Clostridium Difficile at the hospital during October and November.

He said the increase in cases was “partly due to patients also presenting from the community with Clostridium Difficile”.

During October there were seven cases of Clostridium Difficile among patients, Mr Kane confirmed, and the “appropriate infection control measures were put in place” as a result.

He said that patients were isolated and “increased cleaning of equipment and the environment were instigated and an increased emphasis on training and compliance with hand hygiene”.

The hospital has an infection prevention control committee and it met “on a regular basis” to put in place “the appropriate outbreak measures”. The committee also met to “review actions in order to minimise the risk of transmission of this infection including visiting restrictions”.

Last week, Mr Kane said the situation had improved and just four patients had symptoms of the infection. It was being kept under review, he said.

Severe C. Diff can cause diarrhoea, fever, weight loss and abdominal pain. In some cases it can lead to a hole in intestines which can be fatal. It mainly affects elderly patients.

Galway East TD, Colm Keaveney, (FF), who raised the matter in Dáil Éireann, said he welcomed the swift action of the Health Service Executive to address the “worrying” outbreak.

See full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune.