New elective hospital to be developed for the west of Ireland

Health Minister Stephen Donnelly has today (Wednesday) announced Government approval to move forward with the development of a new elective hospital for the west of Ireland on a site at Merlin Park on the eastern side of Galway city.

The HSE's Saolta University Health Care Group, which oversees healthcare services in the Western region, said the new facility would support the separation of scheduled and unscheduled care, reduce cancellations, and address lengthy waiting lists for elective procedures.

Eight operating theatres, seven endoscopy suites and nine minor operation rooms are planned for the new hospital in Galway, which is forecast to provide 175,000 additional procedures, treatments and diagnostic appointments per year.

Procedures in the new elective hospital will be "high volume, low-to-medium complexity surgeries" which can be efficiently planned with dedicated theatres provided.

The elective hospital will be focused on providing day case, GI endoscopy, minor operations, outpatient treatment and outpatient diagnostics services, said the Saolta Group, which added that this would help it to significantly reduce its waiting lists

Commenting on today's announcement, Tony Canavan, CEO of the Saolta Group, said: "This is incredibly welcome news for our region. This development will allow us to provide vital services and earlier access to care for our growing population.

"The greater elective care capacity will also free up capacity in Galway University Hospital for non-elective and inpatient activity and will lead to better health outcomes for our communities."

Speaking about the plans announced by the Minister to develop a surgical hub in Galway, Mr Canavan said all initiatives to address waiting lists in the shorter term would be welcomed.

Prof Pat Nash, Chief Clinical Director for the Saolta Group said: "The new elective hospital located on the Merlin Park site will significantly improve patient access to elective care by reducing waiting times and cancellations. It will allow the Saolta Group significantly increase the level of day-surgery it provides and reduce length of stay for patients in line with best international practice.

"This is a welcome first step towards addressing the critical infrastructure needs at our only Model 4 hospital for the West and Northwest region. The progression of the new permanent Emergency Department and Women’s and Children’s block, a Cancer Centre and ward block, a replacement laboratory and inpatient beds for Merlin Park remain key priorities," he added.