Posted online: Oct 3rd, 2008

By Lauren Harte
lauren@letterkennypost.com

The A&E unit at Letterkenny General Hospital has been ranked the second worst in the country, according to the latest ‘Rate My Hospital’ survey. The hospital faired poorly in the latest online assessment of services by patients. Its A&E unit was named the country’s second worst and generally was placed 23rd out of 45 hospitals surveyed.
The news comes on the back of the HSE’s confirmation that further cutbacks could be on the cards at the hospital. A statement issued to the Letterkenny Post this week followed an announcement that the hospital’s three main unions, IMPACT, the INO and SIPTU are launching a campaign against further cutbacks.
The three unions met on Monday night to draw up a campaign of action against the cuts, which they say reflects their major concerns on the future of services at the hospital.
Last month, it was revealed that the hospital was considering closing one of its major wards at weekends as part of cost-saving measures. This followed the temporary closure of the Day Service Unit and a 20-bed ward for several weeks in August in a bid to keep within budget
With a budget of €112 million, the hospital says it has seen the numbers of patients treated continue to increase at a rate which is ahead of its service plan. In July a number of measures were identified and introduced in order to reduce its rate of spending. While significant improvements in waiting times have been achieved along with the introduction of new service developments, the hospital says it has a legal obligation to remain within budget.
“The management team is committed to ensuring that efforts to remain within its allocated budget focus mainly on reducing inefficiencies in order to minimise impact on patient care. However, some services that are delivering in excess of their service plan targets may need to be restricted in order to ensure that they continue to be safely provided,” a HSE spokesperson said.
The hospital’s Manager, Sean Murphy, added that while spending will have to be curtailed to keep Letterkenny within budget, he is confident that the new A&E unit, expected to be operational by late 2010, remains on track.