Local TD, Denis Naughten, has welcomed the approval of a new heart failure service for Portiuncula Hospital which will see patients diagnosed and treated quicker than in the past.
Working with local GPs the new pilot service funded by the Minister for Health will see more patients treated locally by GPs with the support of the medical team at Portiuncula Hospital, Ballinasloe.
The objective is to treat patients with heart failure quicker and before they need to go to hospital in the first place. For those who do need hospital care this will be available to them far quicker and they will be discharged home in a shorter period of time.
“If this pilot is successful not only will it benefit the 400 or so patients who are admitted to Portiuncula Hospital each year but it will also release an additional 700 bed days for other patients attending the Emergency Department in the hospital.
“Credit is due to the cardiac team at Portiuncula Hospital and local GPs who have developed a project to secure this national funding and it is hoped that some of the other innovative projects put forward by the teams in Portiuncula will be successful in future funding rounds,” Minister Naughten emphasised.
