This article is from page 6 of the 2012-03-20 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 6 JPG
THERE are more Clare people attending the private Galway Clinic in the last year than ever before, despite six per cent of Irish people giving up health insurance.
The Banner county has surpassed Mayo in providing the clinic’s second largest number of patients, now making up 16 per cent of the hospital population. In 2008, at the peak of health insurance ownership, just 12 per cent of the hospital’s patients were from Clare.
Asked why 4,426 Clare people opted for the services of the Galway Clinic in 2011, Business Development Manager Mark Sheehan said the main reason was its locality but the reduction of health services in the area also played a major factor.
“Many of the 4,426 patients were seen at our Emergency Department which has extended its hours of service now daily from 10am to 7pm,” he said. 24-hour accident and emergency services at Ennis General Hospital closed in April 2009, and acute services were later moved to the Mid Western Regional Hospital Limerick.
Mr Sheehan said that demand for cancer services in the west also far outstrips supply, so when the hospital opened its new unit, beds filled up immediately. “In 2009, we expended the range of cancer care services available at the Galway Clinic. This expansion comprised of a new linear accelerator for the provision of radiotherapy, a new oncology day unit and two new inpatients wings comprising of 46 beds. The new floors were im mediately full.”
People are also staying longer at the private hospital, with the average stay increased from 3.6 days to 4.3 days. The extended stay is due to an increase in the range of treatments and diagnosis.
The numbers of surgical cases performed in the Galway Clinic has seen a slight decrease, which can be attributed to the cessation of the NTPF (National Treatment Purchase Fund), according to Mr Sheehan.
“With occupancy levels of 91 per cent last year, the fall off in surgery has not impacted the demand for services. We are currently developing a new multi-storey car park, which will be complete by December 2012. We are also considering building a whole new accommodation wing comprising of approximately 70 single rooms and a new 20-bed ICU department,” said Mr Sheehan.
And while the Galway clinic is looking to expand, Irish health insurers are slow to reveal a county-bycounty break down of the number of people cancelling their insurance.
George Field from VHI told The Clare People that the state-supported health insurer could not reveal the exact number of people from Clare that discontinued their insurance due to commercial sensitivities, but the number was down.