The trade union SIPTU says it remains “very worried” about 200 jobs at University and Merlin Park hospitals in the wake of a HSE proposal to suspend elective surgery, such as hip and knee replacements, and close medical wards at the Merlin Park facility.
Paul Hardy, the union’s health services organiser for Galway, met hospital management earlier this week but said they were unable to offer reassurance on services or jobs.
This followed a protest organised by SIPTU at the gates of the hospital on Monday which was attended by 120 people, including its members from Merlin Park, several hospital consultants, UHG colleagues and members of the public.
Feelings have been running high since a number of concerned Merlin Park hospital consultants spoke out last week about their fears for its future after they were notified by the HSE of the controversial plan aimed at cutting costs. The two long-stay units for older people and the dialysis unit would remain open if the proposal goes ahead but the stroke unit - the only dedicated one in the west - would close.
However, the HSE insists there are no plans to close the hospital on the east side of the city but says it is looking at “streamlining services” and “removing duplication” of ones that are provided on both the Merlin Park and UHG sites.
SIPTU says the proposed changes would be “crazy”. Mr Hardy says the HSE believes by reconfiguring services in the Galway city, Portiuncula and Roscommon hospitals it can save €22 to €24 million over two years.
However, he warns that changes made hurriedly and purely to save “small amounts of money” run the risk of wrecking the excellent reputation of Galway University Hospitals to the lasting discredit of the city.
“Proposals to slash jobs in order to reach an unrealistic and politicially imposed financial target will not only diminish already hard-pressed health services but also add to unemployment and the economic problems of the city and county.”
Galway’s public hospitals have a historical problem of underfunding when compared with hospitals in Dublin, he says.
“St James’ Hospital in Dublin has a budget of €367m while the two Galway hospitals [Merlin Park and UHG] have a budget of €289m and they are significantly busier than St James’s. There is a very longstanding historic problem of underfunding over decades here.
“What I’m looking for is for the historical anomaly to be recognised. To be asking Galway [hospitals] to cut further is madness. Even from an economic point of view it would be crazy to do it. I’m very worried for 200 jobs across the two sites. [UHG and Merlin Park].
“I don’t think there is an easy way of cutting costs. They could make significant savings through reconfiguration and reducing duplication. However, the core problem here is underfunding when compared to other hospitals.”
