HSE confirm MUH looking to install prefabs

Anton McNulty

THE HSE have confirmed that Mayo University Hospital is in an process of applying to avail of modular buildings to cater for overcrowding.
Reports in the national media stated that Mayo University Hospital in Castlebar was one of three hospitals nationwide hoping to avail of temporary accommodation. A spokesperson for HSE confirmed to The Mayo News that Mayo University Hospital was one of the hospitals seeking temporary units to cater for overcrowding.
“The HSE now has a National Framework in place for the provision of temporary alternative accommodation. Any hospital group that wishes to avail of this option can do so by way of a mini-competition within the terms of the National Framework. South Tipperary General Hospital and Mayo University Hospital are currently seeking to progress to a mini competition locally,” the spokesperson said to The Mayo News.
The Emergency Department in Mayo University Hospital has been described as not being fit for purpose having been designed to cater for 25,000 patients per annum and in 2015 having dealt with over 36,000.
The use of modular buildings has long been muted as a way of dealing with overcrowding in hospitals and was defended by the Minister for Health, Simon Harris, who said they are a short-term solution to the overcrowding crisis.
Modular buildings come with a 60-year structural warranty and the site timeline for their  construction from start to finish is 26 weeks.
However, Castlebar-based county councillor, Michael Kilcoyne described the use of modular buildings as ‘a disaster’ and were not the solution for overcrowding.
“The first thing the HSE should do is appoint nurses, doctors and attendants to the hospital which is currently grossly understaffed and it will deal with a lot of the problems. On prefabs, they do not work and are not the solution.
“Our record with prefabs are not good and while they say they are only a temporary measure, they often become a long term solution. History shows us that they are a disaster, we saw it in our schools and we saw it at the Department of Social Welfare at Davitt House. I don’t see why they do not build a proper building,” said the Independent councillor.