SIGNIFICANT REDUCTIONS in waiting lists particularly for orthopaedic surgery were predicted yesterday when the Health Service Executive presented a progress report on the major reconfiguration plan for acute hospitals in Cork and the southwest region.
The transfer of elective orthopaedic surgery from St Mary’s Orthopaedic Hospital to the South Infirmary Victoria in Cork and the appointment of three new permanent orthopaedic surgeons will lead to a major improvement in services, an orthopaedic surgeon has predicted.
Mark Dolan, clinical chair orthopaedic service, said the opening of three new orthopaedic theatres at the South Infirmary Victoria at a cost of about €4 million along with the new appointments should result in a significant reduction in elective orthopaedic waiting lists.
Mr Dolan said the new appointments should lead to a reduction in the ratio of orthopaedic surgeons to population to about one per 50,000 and he hoped it would lead to a reduction in waiting times to about four to five months for elective surgery.
He explained that along with the new theatres and appointments, improvements in efficiency involving pre-operative assessments and extended theatre working times should lead to shorter stays in hospitals, quicker discharges and a greater throughput of patients.
“We would like to see people being seen by their GP and being operated upon within a four- to five-month window after that, which is similar to what’s happening in the UK. Can we achieve that? I think certainly we are getting close to it,” said Mr Dolan.
Mr Dolan was speaking at a briefing by HSE South on the progress being made on its reconfiguration plan for acute hospital services in Cork and Kerry which is seeing elective orthopaedic work transferred from St Mary’s Orthopaedic to the South Infirmary Victoria.
The last elective procedure took place in St Mary’s Orthopaedic in Gurranebraher last Friday and one of the new orthopaedic consultants will start in the South Infirmary in January 2012 with the remaining two taking up their posts in July 2012.
The plan also involves the closure of the emergency department at the South Infirmary Victoria next April with emergency patients currently attending the hospital being seen at either Cork University Hospital or the Mercy University Hospital.
According to HSE South area manager Ger Reaney when the emergency department at the South Infirmary Victoria closes, a new acute medical unit at CUH will be open and will cater for 8,000-9,000 emergency medical patients annually
A new surgical assessment unit at CUH will also be up and running and will treat 3,600 emergency surgical patients annually and a new urgent care centre at St Mary’s Orthopaedic under the governance of the Mercy University Hospital will treat 8,000-9,000 patients.