A private firm is to be drafted in to run a number of the countries hospitals. Among these is Galway University Hospital, which has been beset by long waiting lists and overcrowding.
5 firms, one Irish and 4 from the UK have been shortlisted to fill the position and it is expected that the successful private company will be revealed later this week.
Eight per cent of patients at Galway University Hospital’s emergency department wait more than 24 hours to be admitted to the hospital. According to HSE HealthStat figures, GUH is the worst performing hospital in the country.
Deputy Colm Keaveny believes that the problems in GUH are resource related. He says “the bed capacity and bed closures are a consequence of degrees of clinical mismanagement at GUH and the allocation of resources.”
Speaking on the issue, he believes that “one of the critical problems is the failure of the previous administration’s plans around the fair deal policy.” The purpose of the Scheme is to provide financial support for people assessed as needing long-term nursing home care.
“There are significant numbers of elderly people who should be housed and supported in the community under the fair deals scheme that are currently taking up to 40 beds in GUH causing a backlog in the A&E department” said Deputy Keaveny. He went on to say “We need to reform how we spent money and connect with the community in terms of primary health care”.
Deputy Keaveny is “not convinced the managers at GUH currently who are directly employed are not the best people for the job. The current management is under resourced and spread quite thin. They have been carrying out the jobs of a number of people. Key managers have not been replaced.”
The firm who will take over management of the hospital for 18 months will be announced later this week.
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