A FERMANAGH man who recently required emergency surgery has spoken of his horrible experience of travelling to Derry and waiting over 24 hours to be treated for a condition his doctor had deemed to be very urgent. The man, who stressed he was not normally the type to contact newspapers with complaints, got in touch with the Herald after […]
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” […]
Concerns over Altnagelvin Hospital capacity
THERE are concerns Altnagelvin Hospital is struggling to cope with the influx of Fermanagh patients being sent up from the SWAH for emergency general surgery (EGS). There are no current official figures for how many local patients are being sent to the SWAH, as Fermanagh patients are deemed new ‘walk ins’ at the Derry hospital rather than […]
‘We need to look to the future’ – Fr Brian D’Arcy
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 […]
Royal College director pays a visit to SWAH
ELECTIVE surgery at the SWAH is continuing to grow, with the hospital being lauded as “a great example” of reform of the health service. While Fermanagh patients are continuing to have to travel two hours to Altnagelvin in urgent situations, following the Western Trust’s removal of emergency general surgery from the Enniskillen hospital, efforts are […]
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 […]
SOAS seeks meeting with NI Health Minister Robin Swann
NEWLY re-appointed Health Minister Robin Swann has been urged to commit to restoring emergency general surgery (EGS) at the SWAH. Campaign group Save Our Acute Services has already written to Minister Swann requesting an urgent meeting on the situation. The decision by the Western Trust to withdraw the EGS service at the Enniskillen hospital was announced a […]