HEALTH campaigners in Fermanagh have questioned claims in a report by the independent regulator that there have been no immediate patient safety concerns raised by the removal of emergency general surgery (EGS) from the South West Acute Hospital (SWAH).
In November 2022 the Western Trust announced it was “temporarily” suspending EGS at the Enniskillen hospital, citing staff shortages as its reason for being unable to maintain its surgical rota.
Since then, local patients requiring any unplanned surgical procedure – outside of obstetrics and gynaecology – have had to make a more than 100-mile roundtrip to Altnagelvin Hospital. Many of these patients had been asked to make their own way to Derry, often at night or in adverse weather conditions.
In July last year the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) launched a review into the pathways associated with the suspension of SWAH EGS, and their direct and indirect impacts. As part of this, RQIA staff spent time in Fermanagh speaking with patients regarding their experiences.
This afternoon, local media gathered at the SWAH for a briefing on the report of of this review.
The report sets out 10 recommendations for the Trust to implement to improve patients’ experience of those pathways, including a recommendation to stop ‘double ED’ transfers – a practice that has seen many local patients face waits twice as long as patients from other areas as a result of having to wait in two ED queues in both SWAH and Altnagelvin.
Health Minister Mike Nesbitt noted the report was not a review into the suspension of SWAH EGS, but rather the provisions put in place in the wake of its suspension. He welcomed its findings.
“First and foremost, the Review did not identify immediate patient safety issues arising from the pathways,” said Minister Nesbitt. “It did, however, identify areas where improvements to pathways can be made.
“My Department, the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (NIAS) and the Trust accept all of the recommendations of the Review and I am pleased to report that work is already in progress to take forward the recommendations arising. My Department will continue to work alongside to the Trust as the recommendations are implemented.”
Chief executive of the Western Trust Neil Guckian also welcomed the report, and said the Trust was committed to implementing the recommendations.
“We fully engaged in the review process and are reassured that the review supports our own findings that there have been no patient safety concerns arising from the temporary patient pathways,” he said.
“We are pleased to report that work is already underway to achieve the recommendations and good progress is being made regarding their implementation.”
However, campaigner group Save Our Acute Services – which is made up of volunteers from across Fermanagh and Tyrone – has said the findings of today’s report appear to be “a complete travesty” for local patients and staff.
“They [the Western Trust] are putting the staff of this area in an impossible position and the management of this Trust, who are in charge of the duty of care of every single patient in this area, are clearly not listening to the patient,” said a spokesperson for SOAS directly following the publication of the report.
“We are very disappointed, having had faith in RQIA and its independence, that the finds seem to imply patient safety is not a priority. Time matters everywhere else expect Fermanagh,” they continued.
The spokesperson added it the Trust had removed EGS without a risk assessment, and had appeared to ignore the community’s feedback during its public consultation on the situation.
For full coverage of this report see next week’s Fermanagh Herald.
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