A&E at St Columcille’s hospital in Loughlinstown to close at end of month

The emergency department at St Columcille’s hospital in Loughlinstown is to close at the end of the month, the HSE has confirmed.

From next month, a local injuries unit will operate at the hospital seven days a week from 8am to 6pm. It will treat minor injuries such as broken bones and burns, while emergency cases will be sent to St Vincent’s hospital. A medical assessment unit will also operate for long-term conditions such as asthma and diabetes.

Staff and patients are being informed this week of the closure of the emergency department as part of a change of the hospital to level 2 status. A HSE spokeswoman said work on the reconfiguration of clinical services had been ongoing to bring service provision in line with best practice as outlined in the national clinical care programmes.

'Utterly unacceptable'

She said more than 80 per cent of patients currently attending the hospital would continue to receive treatment in the local injuries unit, the medical assessment unit or by direct admission to the medical ward. Overall, patient attendances would rise, with a planned increase in day surgery and outpatient services.

The closure of the emergency department has been seen as inevitable since concerns were raised by Hiqa several years ago about safety issues at a number of smaller hospitals, including Loughlinstown.

People before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett said it was utterly unacceptable to shut down the 24-hour emergency service at Loughlinstown. “If there is a serious accident on the N11, the extra distance to St Vincent’s could mean the difference between life and death,”he added.