Omagh urgent care centre seeing more patients than Erne A&E
Thursday, 23 October 2008
by Emma Stewart.
Department of Health figures, prompted by a question posed by West Tyrone MLA., Tom Buchanan, have revealed that - on average - Omagh's Urgent Care and Treatment Centre (UCTC) receives four more admissions each week than Enniskillen's Accident and Emergency department.
Despite ambulance protocols directing patients away from the Tyrone County Hospital, and children under 16 with anything other than minor injuries being taken elsewhere for treatment in hospitals with inpatient consultant paediatric services, Omagh's numbers still remain higher.
In a written answer from Health Minister, Michael McGimpsey, Mr Buchanan was informed that from January to June 2008, 11,656 patients attended the A&E in the Erne, while 11,761 patients were seen at the Tyrone County's UCTC.
Calling on the Department of Health, the Western Health and Social Care Trust and the health minister to "take cognisance" of the figures, the Stormont Health Committee member called on them to "awaken to reality".
“I know this will not make good reading for the chief executive and management of the Western Health Trust and the minister who have deliberately removed services from and introduced ambulance protocols prohibiting patients being taken to the Tyrone County in a blatant attempt to drive the people away.
Backfired
“However their deviousness has again backfired with still four patients per week on average more using the Urgent Care and Treatment Centre in Omagh than the A&E in the Erne, which sends out a clear message to those charged with the delivery of health provision in County Tyrone that they must awaken to reality and allow the excellent facilities at the Tyrone County Hospital to be utilised to their full potential," he said.
Responding to the figures, a spokesperson for the Western Health and Social Care Trust said: "The figures cited for A&E Departments at the Erne Hospital, Altnagelvin Area Hospital and the Urgent Care services at the Urgent Care and Treatment Centre (UCTC) in Omagh, should be interpreted within the context of the services provided at each location.
“There are significant differences in the type of condition with which a patient presents upon arrival at the UCTC compared to an A&E department.
“For example, the figure for Tyrone County Hospital includes those patients who are admitted via the clinical decision service, as well as those who attend for Urgent Care and treatment, whereas direct admission of ward patients does not appear on Erne Hospital or Altnagelvin Area Hospital A&E figures.
Minor
“A greater proportion of patients with minor injuries would attend the Urgent Care and Treatment Centre than would attend A&E at the Erne Hospital or Altnagelvin Area Hospital. The figures are also dependent on local usage and GP referral patterns."
They continued: "The figures demonstrate that local populations are continuing to access local services which are provided by professional and dedicated medical and nursing teams on all three sites."
Calling the figures "revealing but hardly surprising", Dr Kieran Deeny MLA has struck out at the Trust's defence.
Their argument that a 'greater proportion of patients with minor injuries' would attend the UCTC than either A&E, he says, is "absolutely nonsensical".
“That statement could only have been made by somebody who has no medical knowledge. People often attend even the largest A&Es, such as that at the Royal in Belfast, for the smallest of injuries.
“Those places are coming down with minor ailments, that's the way it is!"
“Ambulances are being told to take everything to the Erne Hospital , including possible fractures, under-16s, anything to do with abdominal pain, and still we have these figures," he said.
“People are beginning to have serious doubts about what Enniskillen is going to get. The penny is starting to drop with the Trust and some of the consultant staff that they're not going to get the patient population they thought they were."
Sustainability
On the issue of the sustainability of the new acute hospital, the Carrickmore GP said: "Maternity was the classic example - only a small percentage of Omagh mothers have gone to the Erne."
Incensed by the proposed PFI build at Wolf Lough, he said: "I don't see how, in the present economic climate, you can justify spending £267 million on an acute hospital which will attract less than 75,000 people.
“I don't think they'll get the hospital they think."
Responding to an inquiry from the Tyrone Constitution as to how these figures reflect upon the service provision in Omagh versus the sustainability of the Erne's A&E, the health minister, Michael McGimpsey, said: "The healthcare needs of the people of the south west can only sustain one acute hospital.
“I am committed to providing a new acute hospital to be built to the north of Enniskillen. This hospital will provide a broad range of acute services including 24/7 consultant-led A&E.
“Those services will be complemented by the new enhanced local hospital in Omagh to include a 24/7 Urgent Care and Treatment Centre. The services provided at the new enhanced local hospital, in conjunction with primary care, will meet the vast majority of the healthcare needs in the Omagh area.
“The construction of these two new hospitals in the south west represents a significant investment of almost £500m and will ensure that people in the area have access to high quality services in state-of-the-art facilities."
