The leader of Independent Ireland Michael Collins has described reports that the new €90 million surgical hub at Cork University Hospital (CUH) treated fewer than ten patients after opening and was subsequently forced to close for a period as a “staggering indictment of how healthcare is being managed in this country.”
The Cork South-West TD said the development raises serious questions about planning and operational oversight at a time when tens of thousands of patients remain waiting for treatment.
“What was presented to the public as a flagship investment in healthcare is rapidly becoming a monument to health service mismanagement. Patients were promised additional surgical capacity, shorter waiting lists and faster access to treatment,” he said
“Instead, a facility that cost taxpayers €90 million reportedly treated fewer than ten patients before running into difficulties. It is a humiliation for the HSE and the minister.”
He went on to say that the public now deserves immediate answers regarding the circumstances surrounding the closure, while criticising the silence of the Minister for Health and the Taoiseach Micheál Martin in relation to the matter.
“Taxpayers invested €90 million in this facility. Minister MacNeill and the Taoiseach came down and made a big political event of it, but when things go wrong, they run for the hills, and no one can get a word or a comment out of either of them it appears.”
Deputy Collins said the public would struggle to understand how a project that was delayed for years and heralded as a major breakthrough could suffer operational problems almost immediately after opening.
“Ordinary families waiting months and, in many cases, years for procedures will be asking how in God’s name can a €90 million facility be opened only to close shortly afterwards and deliver so little for patients?”
He said the controversy also highlights a recurring pattern within the health service where announcements and publicity appear to take precedence over actual healthcare delivery.
“The HSE and Government seem far more comfortable announcing projects than ensuring they are ready to operate effectively.”
The Independent Ireland leader noted that he has repeatedly raised concerns about capacity constraints throughout the South-West and the consequences these pressures have for patients in West Cork.
“For years I have warned about the consequences of chronic capacity shortages within our hospital system. We have seen ambulances bypassing Bantry General Hospital and travelling long distances to CUH. We have seen emergency departments and Community Hospitals overwhelmed. Against that backdrop, the public were entitled to expect that a €90 million investment would deliver immediate and continuous benefits.”
Deputy Collins also questioned the failure to maximise existing regional healthcare resources.
He concluded by saying, “what makes this situation all the more frustrating is that our regional hospitals continue to be denied the investment and resources necessary to fulfil their potential. Time and again we are told the solution lies in another centralised project, another promise, another announcement. Yet communities continue to experience delays while existing capacity elsewhere remains underutilised.”
Cork Echo Live reported this morning that: “A recently-opened €90m surgical hub at Cork University Hospital was forced to close immediately for two weeks over potential air-contamination issues – and has only treated a handful of patients since”.
The hub was officially opened by Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll McNeill and the Taoiseach on September 28, two years later than planned.