SECURING a bariatric surgery hub at the SWAH would be a “building block” to help sustain wider services into the future, officials from the Department of Health have been told. Among those to address the officials who took time out to meet with SOAS volunteers on Thursday, when the group travelled to Stormont to deliver […]
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 […]
SOAS takes SWAH campaign from Fermanagh to Stormont
SOAS volunteers are in Belfast this afternoon to ensure the people of Fermanagh have their voices heard in support of the SWAH.
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 […]
ED waiting times surged in past year
WHILE waiting times from presentation to admission have increased slightly over the past year, there has been a significant increase at Altnagelvin. Figures for emergency department (ED) waiting times for December 2023 were released by the Department of Health last week. The figures showed an median wait of 14 hours, 19 minutes from presentation to treatment across […]
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 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 […]
Health Minister invited to discuss SWAH crisis
NEWLY re-appointed Health Minister Robin Swann is to be invited to a special meeting of the Council to discuss the “life-threatening” situation of the withdrawal of emergency general surgery at the SWAH, with the Western Trust failure to begin planning for the return of the service branded “a disgrace”. The proposal to do so came from […]
Fr Gary Donegan set to undergo second surgery today
FERMANAGH cleric Fr Gary Donegan is set to undergo surgery today (Wednesday) after he suffered ‘another bleed’ in his eye. In December, the Newtownbutler priest revealed that he had to have an operation to restore the sight in his right eye after losing his vision a few weeks ago when a bleed to it caused extensive damage. […]
Families clock up thousands of miles on road to Derry
FERMANAGH families are clocking up thousands of miles each, and are forking hundreds of pounds in the midst of a cost of living crisis, travelling to Derry with their loved ones who require treatment at Altnagelvin Hospital. For example, two local siblings told the Herald they have recently travelled well over 2,000 miles and have spent almost […]