Sixty beds are set aside at University Hospital Galway for cancer patients who require urgent treatment.
A recent meeting of the HSE West’s regional health forum was told that every effort is made to promptly transfer cancer patients who need urgent treatment, which is unavailable in the hospitals in which they are patients, to the regional hospital.
This “timely” transfer applies to hospitals, both within and outside the Saolta Group, which runs the local public hospitals, said Tony Canavan, the chief executive of the Saolta University Health Care Group.
He outlined that the timeframe for these transfers can vary widely, depending on the availability of beds on the specific ward and the number of patients that are admitted to the hospital but are still on trolleys in the emergency department. It can also depend on getting the patient onto a list for a particular procedure that can only be carried out at UHG.
Replying to a question from Mayo councillor Michael Kilcoyne who asked how many beds are available at the Galway facility, which is a cancer centre of excellence, for such emergencies, he stated there are currently 25 beds each for oncology and haematology patients and 10 beds for in-patient radiotherapy patients.
In reply to the councillor’s query about the maximum length of time patients might have to wait, Mr Canavan said delays can vary. However, if they are critically ill they sometimes are transferred directly to the intensive care or high dependency units.
