This article is from page 13 of the 2006-05-02 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 13 JPG
THE Labour Party spokesperson on health has warned that the future of the Accident and Emergency Department at Ennis General Hospital may not yet be secure and accused the Government of refusing to give a straight answer on the subject.
Liz McManus (TD) cited the “desperate” response of the Clare people as the main reason why the Accident and Emergency facility was maintained in Ennis. She was speaking at the Burren Law School which took place in Ballyvaughan over the weekend.
“I am happy that the mad notion that the Government had about closing the Accident and Emergency in Ennis looks to be buried for the moment. But still you can never get a straight answer out of them (the Government) and they say that the Handley report is still policy,” said Deputy McManus.
“The people response was so desperate that to close down the Accident and Emergency in Ennis would be unwise for them.”
The Wicklow-based TD also accused the Government of neglecting parts of the west, especially in relation to breast cancer screening.
“The Labour Party has been running a campaign looking for equality for women in the west and the south when it comes to brest checks. It is absolutely outrageous that you cannot access care based simply on your address and where you live. The government is responsible for this,” continued Ms McManus.
“Without any doubt we need more beds in the system – we need at least 2,500 acute bed and 2,000 community beds as well as more long-stay beds in the community.”