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A meeting held at Newry Town Hall on The Future of Daisy Hill saw a panel of speakers discuss the current difficulties encountered at the Newry hospital following a decision by the Southern Trust to remove emergency surgery from the facility at the end of this month.
The meeting despite a poor attendance gave a platform for many of the participants to get their thoughts across and it was clear to see that emotions run high where our health is concerned.
The panel consisted of Chair Eamonn McGrady, Down Health Committee; Dr Conor Patterson, Newry and Mourne Co-Operative and Enterprise Agency; Liz Kimmins, MLA; Cllr Gavin Malone; Cllr David Taylor; John McArdle, former Councillor and Daisy Hill Hospital employee and Justin McNulty MLA. Senator Erin McGreehan was also meant to be in attendance but couldn't make it!
Just a beginning
Speaking after the event Mr McNulty, organiser said “I called tonight’s public meeting to find an agreed path forward on how to best defend and expand Daisy Hill. The people of Newry, South Armagh, and South Down have told us what they expect – now is time to get on with it. I will be working with absolutely everyone who wishes to put their shoulder to the wheel for Daisy Hill – unions, community groups, business interests, and political parties.
“Tonight’s public meeting was not a conclusion, it was just a beginning. It is time for sensible solutions to the challenges facing Daisy Hill. It is time for Newry City’s Hospital at Daisy Hill to be expanded to serve its natural hinterland of the border region of counties Armagh, Down, Louth, Monaghan, and Cavan. It is time for Newry City Hospital at Daisy Hill to become an exciting new hub hospital on the eastern seaboard of Ireland.”
'One of the best teaching hospitals for surgery'
Junior Doctor at the Downe Hospital James McKevitt explained how Daisy Hill Hospital was renouned as a great teaching hospital and lamented that things will get worse if services are further reduced.
"The fight for Daisy Hill has gone on a very long time but if you look at the facts it's a city half way between the two other large cities on this island, Newry and Mourne population is over 100,000 and if you look at the projections and the census coming out soon we'll find that Newry and Mourne is soon going to overtake Derry City." he said.
Dr McKevitt continued "When I was training and I did my surgical training in Daisy Hill Hospital and it was well renowned as one of the best and it was one of the best teaching hospitals for surgery and a lot of it was down to Mr Brown who retired when I was there. That was five years ago and they still have not replaced his job. The Southern Trust has known this for a very long time that there are shortages in Consultant Surgeons and it's very disappointing to see that there has been a lack of workforce planning on this.
"We have far less doctors per capita, far less nurses per capita, far less hospital beds per capita than anywhere else in Europe and the peoples healthcare here is suffering with greatening rates of poor health, with heart disease, with poor mental health. I think that if services are further reduced at Daisy Hill, it's only going to get worse and it's going to be the people here that are going to suffer for that." he concluded.
A cradle to the grave service
Councillor Jarlath Tinnelly gave an emotional contribution and said all needed to speak with one voice to ensure that his children's children would also be carried out the door of Daisy Hill "I carried my four children out through that door when they first drew a breath of fresh air as newborns and 200 metres to the right hand side of that door is the morgue, and I carried my mother out of it and I carried many relatives out of it over the years - and the point being - It's a cradle to the grave service, a cradle to the grave necessity and there's not a family from Annalong to Cullaville that hasn't used that facility in some shape or form at some stage." he said.
Cllr Tinnelly added "If we don't draw the line in the sand now collectively, that is a story that will be consigned to the history books. Those four children that I refer to, my own four children, their children may not have the same experience or affection or empathy for this building because it will no longer be there. So that line in the sand Chairman I think has to be built in concrete and the Trust have to be made aware that we are not taking this any more as a society and a community in South Down, Newry and South Armagh."
He continued "This is not a criticism, it's an observation. I have noticed posters right throughout the district that have appeared in the past number of weeks where political reps are sort of saying, back us we will save it, back us we're going to sort it out, but there is no getting away from it. If you just fell out of the sky and you weren't familiar with this area and you seen those poster that I have seen, you'd quickly conclude that's obviously the opposition parties, those are the people that are going to sort it out! But it's not! Stormont has been in place, not continuously obviously, but there or thereabouts for 20 years, and this is the Government and the parties from the Government are sitting on the stage tonight and my plea to them is this, that if ever there was an issue Chairman that has to be a-political and doesn't belong to any political party, this is it. This issue cannot be sorted out from the silos or the bunkers of a political party for political gain."
Ensure Daisy Hill becomes a proper acute hospital
Adding his thoughts Mickey Brady MP said "I've always said and I'll continually say, health is above politics, we are all working towards the same goal. We need to have a unified approach because divide and conquer can often be the alternative to that and we need to go forward as a united front. Daisy Hill is an excellent hospital. I'm actually one of the generation that was born at home, I wasn't born in Daisy Hill but for my family over the years Daisy Hill has been a stalwart in helping us through many many crises and we need to make sure that Daisy Hill, the site is expanded. We are not just here to try to sustain Daisy Hill, we are here to ensure that Daisy Hill becomes a proper acute hospital with all the facilities that's needed. This excuse about the electrical power thing has been going on for many many years, it's becoming a bit of a joke. Can it be rectified? It could probably be rectified very very quickly because I'm sure the economic position isn't all that dire in respect of that.
"The other thing is as Conor (Patterson) and other people have eluded to, we are in the midst of between Drogheda, the Louth Hospital in Dundalk is no longer functioning as it should be and we are between Drogheda and Craigavon. I was around when Craigavon was being built. It was a vanity project. The so called city of Craigavon to join up with Lurgan and Portadown never happened so the hospital that was built there was a bit of a sop. Newry has been marginalised, if you look at reports that came out during the 60's with the factories opening and closing when the grants ran out. If we look we have a dual carriageway with people parking. It's the only place in the world we let people park on the inside lane of a dual carriageway which is slightly ridiculous. I always felt that somebody when they came out as an engineer - go down to Newry, sort out a wee road there and keep them quiet. We deserve more. Newry deserves more and I can assure you as an MP I have represented this Constituency to the best of my ability and will continue to do so. Daisy Hill - Newry people deserve better. We've always deserved better and it's up to us that we get better. Go raibh mile maith agat."
The Panel
Cara Malone was disappointed at the make up of the panel "We're talking about a predominately female workforce and statistics would indicate that it's predominately females who take their children to hospital, who take their mothers to hospital etc so I'm very disappointed that you've one woman sitting up there." In reply Mr McNulty said that Senator Erin McGreehan had been unable to attend and that staff members from the hospital weren't going to risk their jobs by sitting on the panel.
Damian McShane also wondered why no one from the Trust was present "Why is there no one from the Southern Health Trust here to speak? I have heard talk here tonight of people blaming the Trust for different things. The decisions that they have to take ultimately come from Stormont and that's where the blame lies, with the elected politicians, not the Health Trust. I want the same services in Craigavon, just as I want to see them in Daisy Hill and I avail of them like everybody else. Please come together, put pressures on your leaders in Stormont because that's who's making the decision and you are supporting them so take the blame and take the blame on to yourself, don't push it on to the health trust."
Long term plan needed
Councillor David Taylor said he impressed on the Health Minister Robin Swann "As a key facility we need to see some long term sustainable plan for the hospital going forward, because it's clear the wide network of community that it facilitates, it needs security because the health staff that are within that building, the patients that use it need that confidence that the facility will be there for the long term and the services that are there will be sustained and in fact expanded. That's what everyone wants and what Daisy Hill deserves."
Speaking on the recruitment issues at the hospital Cllr Taylor added "It seems to be that whenever dificulties arise as a result of the failure of recruitment that Daisy Hill bears the brunt of that and we need to see clear plans of action by both the Trust and the Department as to how they are going to expand the staff provision that is in Daisy Hill because that's the way the services will be secured."
Support the Campaign
Jackie Coade said "I'm very very aware of how services have been cut. It has been going on for a very long time and it is about time that we just said enough's enough. Daisy Hill is ideally placed but in order for it to expand and everything else we have to ensure as well that there is the infrastructure to get to it and in"
Ms Coade continued "We are very much in support of any campaign to keep Daisy Hill. We absolutely feel it is a necessity. As I said there is huge opportunity here and I really would appeal to any of those people at home who thought about coming, please come and support this campaign. When we have feet on the ground and people speaking out about it, it's very difficult to say no.I hope that we don't have to have another meeting please ensure that all these seats are filled.
This is our hospital. This is going to impact on every single person in this room whether you are having a baby, you have a child who's sick, whether you are in your latter years, you will need this health service at some point and we need to be sure that it is accessible and that we have the best of care when we are here."
Threats
Former hospital employee John McArdle spoke of the threats to the facility this past few years including a threat to close Accident and Emergency services, a threat to close the Switchboard from 5 on a Friday to 9 on a Monday, a threat to close the laboratory a threat to close Stroke Services and now the threat on emergency services.
Cross Border option
Councillor Gavin Malone "We need to have a coordinated approach to fight this extremely serious situation and we need everyone to sing from the same hymn sheet if we are going to keep our brilliant Daisy Hill Hospital and all our brilliant staff working there. We also have to ensure that a cross border option is included in the forthcoming consultation on surgical services in our district. If this option is not included we all understand that Daisy Hill is under very very serious threat."
Services focused on certain areas
Liz Kimmins MLA said "Daisy Hill should not be seen as something that is dispensable. Daisy Hill is a key location right on the border but also the only hospital between Drogheda and Portadown and for too long services have been focused in certain areas of the north and that is something we won't allow to happen."
Importance of a primary acute hospital in promoting area
Conor Patterson, Chief Executive, Newry and Mourne Co-Operative and Enterprise Agency "Having a primary acute hospital in a so called city is important in terms of promoting that city, in terms of attracting investors, attracting talent for companies, and it's as important as the landscape we promote, the tourism, the quality of life."
"The population of the immediate hinterland of Newry is 100,000. If you include the area across the border, the immediate hinterland north Louth, Monaghan, that brings it up to 250,000. That is more than adequate to justify a full primary acute hospital service in Newry."
Dead
The bottom line was mentioned by many but summing it up short and sweet was Maura O'Shea who said "I have an aneurysm, I live right beside the hospital and I could walk to it. If my aneurysm burst, by the time I get to Craigavon I would have bled to death .. and many other people would be the same."
