Madam, – It saddened me when I saw the reality of the closure of some wards/beds and the reduction of services at Our Lady’s Hospital, Navan. I was being discharged, and the unit I was in was being cleared out to become a storage place for linen.
Like other patients, I have been served well by Our Lady’s over the past 23 years, since my illness began. I have first-hand experience of the medical, surgical, A E, outpatients, clinics and the ambulance service. To suggest the standard of care is inadequate is an insult to the highly qualified medical, surgical and orthopaedic teams. Our consultants, doctors and nurses are top-class, on a par with the best in the country.
It is reassuring and comforting for patients and relatives in this area to have a hospital of this status in Navan. Many lives have been saved (mine included) and for many the quality of life has been improved. There is talk of building a centre of excellence in the region. We do not have the infrastructure to operate this type of system, and we do not need it because we already have an excellent centre – Our Lady’s Hospital.
If the current closures and reduction of services continue, patients would be expected to travel to inaccessible locations. This would cause stress and anxiety for sick people and relatives. Patients should be the number one priority, not economics.
I would ask Minister for Health Mary Harney and the HSE to overturn their decision and restore all services to Our Lady’s Hospital as a matter of urgency and let the professionals get on with their work. – Yours, etc,