Ulster Unionist Representative David Taylor has outlined his disappointment at the Southern Health & Social Care Trust’s proposal to transfer emergency surgery provision at Daisy Hill Hospital to Craigavon Area Hospital.
Councillor Taylor said:
“The proposal by Southern Health & Social Care Trust to transfer emergency surgery provision from Daisy Hill Hospital to Craigavon Area Hospital is disappointing.
“I acknowledge the challenges outlined in terms of the availability of Consultant General Surgeons within the Trust area at this time. I am concerned however, as will many be across the community, that the Trust has felt it necessary to remove emergency surgery provision from Daisy Hill Hospital.
“I am engaging with the Health Minister to ensure that Daisy Hill Hospital is fully maximised as a facility both for local patients and for the benefit of the wider region. I know from my conversations with Robin Swann since he became Health Minister that he sees Daisy Hill as a major asset in the hospital estate. I have stressed to him, the importance of attracting staff to Daisy Hill to ensure that service provision at the Hospital is retained and enhanced.
“I’ve also asked the Trust to explore the transfer of more elective surgery to Daisy Hill Hospital as a means of fully utilising the capacity of beds and staff at the Hospital.
“There must be a concerted effort by Senior Trust officials and the Department of Health to achieve an increased capacity of Consultant General Surgeons in the Trust area. This is absolutely vital to ensure that emergency surgery service provision is sustained in the long term at Hospital sites across the Southern Trust area including at Daisy Hill Hospital.”
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