A WOMAN in her late 70’s has been left badly shaken after a trip to A&E at the South West Area Hospital left her ‘emotionally and physically traumatised’. Following a harrowing isolated 12-hour wait, the patient, who went into the emergency department after becoming very short of breath said: “If I ever get sick again I will die […]
Another service gone at SWAH in Fermanagh
THE OPALS programme is not the first innovative and wide-reaching initiative to have been lost from the SWAH, with a preventative cardiology service also now no longer available at the Enniskillen hospital. A Freedom of Information request by Save Our Acute Services (SOAS), which was returned last week, revealed the much-praised ‘Our Hearts Our Minds’ service was removed […]
Fermanagh suspected stroke patient sent home without scan
“UNTIL you have ill health, you won’t realise how broken the system is.” That’s the message from a Fermanagh patient who, after suffering a suspected stroke, was sent home in the middle of the night without receiving a scan or a test following an 11-hour wait to be seen in the SWAH emergency department. Two days later the patient collapsed again, requiring another […]
SWAH surgery removal putting pressure on ambulances
THERE is concern the removal of emergency general surgery (EGS) from the SWAH is putting pressure on the local ambulance service, with hundreds of patients needing transferred to from Enniskillen to Altnagelvin last year. Figures obtained by Save Our Acute Services (SOAS) show that from January 2023 to January 2024 the NI Ambulance Service (NIAS) […]
Fermanagh outraged at ‘cultural issue’ comment
FERMANAGH patients are more than willing to travel for elective treatment, they are simply requesting equal access to timely treatment when it comes to emergency care. That’s the message from Save Our Acute Services (SOAS) following local anger at comments made in a report to the Department of Health which stated there was “a cultural issue” […]
Junior doctors take to the picket lines
JUNIOR doctors in Fermanagh and across the North have begun their first ever strike action, taking to the picket lines this morning (Wednesday) as part of an ongoing dispute over pay and conditions. Anyone with a hospital appointment today is likely to have it rescheduled, with “significant disruption to hospital services” expected as a result of the industrial action, which […]
Fr Gary Donegan has third surgery
FR Gary Donegan said he was ‘genuinely moved’ after a community youth group in Ardoyne sent him ‘get well soon’ messages online, just hours after he underwent a third surgery on his eye. The Fermanagh cleric was admitted to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast, on Wednesday in a bid to secure the sight in his […]
Calls increase to protect health scheme
THE FAMILY of a local man who recently avoided a traumatic hospital stay thanks to a pioneering local health project has called for the scheme to be protected in the long-term for the benefit of both patients and the health service. ‘Hospital at Home’ was first introduced by the Western Trust at four local care […]
Fermanagh care staff completely stressed out by system
A FERMANAGH carer has spoken out about the daily challenges in delivering care to those who need it in the local community, outlining how it is not a shortage of staff that is leading to issues, but the system itself. The frustrated carer reached out to the Herald in response to our reporting on the heartbreaking […]
‘Fermanagh community is united behind our hospital’
THE POWER of the people of Fermanagh in the fight to save SWAH services is continuing to grow, with the current campaign to bring bariatric surgery to the hospital bringing the entire community together. As previously reported by the Herald, the Department of Health is currently running a consultation on the future of obesity services, which […]