New scanner a ‘smokescreen for cutbacks’
Dublin People 19 Nov 2011
THE Government’s promise of a new
?¬1 million MRI
scanner for Connolly Hospital is a
“distraction
? from the drastic cutbacks that
will be inflicted on the hospital next year, campaigners have claimed.
The Defend Blanchardstown Hospital group says the
provision of an MRI scanner is very welcome, but describes the announcement as
“cynically timed
? as it comes just days after staff were warned of cutbacks of
up to
?¬8-9 million facing the hospital in 2012.
Speaking to Northside People, campaign coordinator
Aaron McKenna said that the MRI scanner should not be used as a
“carrot to
entice doctors to beat patients with a stick
?.
“Obviously we are elated at news of the provision of
an MRI scanner, which is an essential diagnostic tool for any hospital,
? he
said.
“We have been lobbying for this for almost 10 years,
and it will save money because patients will no longer have to be ferried back
and forth to other hospitals for scans.
“However, it should not come with strings attached. It
looks like a PR attempt to distract from the cutbacks we’re facing. This is the
Government reaching into its piggybank to see what little goodies it can find
by way of distraction.
?
In a statement, Minister Joan Burton said the delivery
of the MRI scanner was conditional on the hospital achieving a range of
“cost
containment
? measures.
A spokesperson for Dublin North East HSE confirmed
that these measures include the closure of acute beds, seasonal closure of
surgical day wards, reductions in overtime and agency staff, adhering to
smaller budgets and
“a reduction in service activity across all specialties
?.
“On the basis that the management and medical board of
the hospital undertake to deliver on these cost containment measures, the HSE
is proposing to make a once-off capital allocation of
?¬1 million to ensure the
hospital acquires the new imaging unit,
? said Minister Burton.
News of the promised MRI scanner got widespread press
coverage, but campaigners says the real story is how the hospital and the
330,000 people it serves will cope with upcoming cutbacks.
A HSE briefing to consultants in the hospital revealed
that the scale of the cuts to come will mean that by 2012 Connolly Hospital
will have seen its budget fall by 28 per cent since 2009, or from
?¬104 million
to
?¬75 million in three years.
During this time, the number of patients treated at
the hospital has increased by 10 per cent. A statement issued by HSE Dublin
North West said the hospital would have a
“projected overspend
? of
?¬5.8 billion
by the end of this year, which will be carried forward into next year’s budget.
Staff numbers will also be reduced by 10 per cent in 2012.
Mr McKenna said that although A&E services are
being maintained, the HSE is inflicting
“death by a thousand cuts
? elsewhere to
hospital services.
“Doctors have been told that A&E services are to
be prioritised and that all other services such as regular surgery are to be
cut severely,
? he told Northside People.
To highlight how the cuts might impact on patients, Mr
McKenna claimed that a 70-year-old Northside man presented to the hospital with
chest pains before the summer and was scheduled for routine heart surgery in
early November.
“His surgery was cancelled and pushed back to next
year, with no date given. This man has heart difficulties every day and, God
forbid, could have a heart attack in the meantime.
?
Dr Eamon Leen, a Consultant Pathologist at Connolly
Hospital, says the cutbacks are especially damaging because the hospital deals
overwhelmingly with public patients.
“Most people living in the Blanchardstown area cannot
afford private health insurance,
? he said.
“We are being asked to concentrate
on the acute cases and on casualty work, but the flip side is that when you
reduce outpatient clinics, you run the risk of missing people showing early
signs and symptoms of disease.
?
“Although A&E is being kept open, support services
like beds and staff are being reduced so you can’t get people out of casualty
and into beds. This is why we’re seeing patients on trolleys and even on chairs
waiting for treatment.
?
The Defend Blanchardstown Hospital group is determined
to step up its campaign of opposition to the cutbacks and is holding a
‘day of
action’ on December 3 which will involve a number of protests throughout Dublin
15.
Local Socialist councillor Ruth Coppinger, who is
helping to organise the campaign, is determined to continue fighting the cuts.
“We will be collecting petitions, giving people
information, contacting all the residents’ associations and community groups,
trying to build our campaign. We want to alert people to what’s happening at
the hospital.
?
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