North Mayo councillor calls for 7-day hospital services in MUH

Crossmolina councillor Michael Loftus has said he would “love to see a seven-day service in all hospitals.”

His comments follow a question he raised at a recent HSE Regional Health Forum meeting, where he sought an update on the availability of consultants and other medical services on Saturdays at Mayo University Hospital.

In response, Integrated Health Area Manager for Mayo, Mary Warde, outlined the hospital’s continued focus on increasing weekend activity. She said these measures are intended to “help support patient flow over recent months.”

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Warde explained that medical consultants are now undertaking additional rostered ward rounds on Saturdays.

 “Radiology consultants are also working on Saturdays, alongside this, we have a number of the multidisciplinary team covering Saturdays, including cardiac investigations, physio and OT for older people services,” she added.

She added that Mayo University Hospital is currently engaging with relevant unions to further expand weekend services.

“We have four projects with the unions at present. Three of these relate to diagnostics, while the fourth focuses on the provision of weekend therapies, supporting older patients with admission avoidance and reducing their length of stay,” she said.

The Integrated Health Area Manager for Mayo concluded by stating that she expects outcomes from these decisions within the coming weeks.

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