Joyful day for official opening of dialysis unit
MEMBERS of the board of management of B. Braun travelled from Germany for the official opening of Wellstone Wexford Renal Care Centre at Sinnottstown Lane in Drinagh which was attended by Minister of State for Defence Paul Kehoe and the Mayor of Wexford Cllr. Jim Moore.
Markus Strotmann, Dr. Holger Seeberg, Christopher Boeffel and Lars Peter Diege joined with Leo Halpenny, managing director of B.Braun Ireland and Liam Ferguson, European Director of Avitum to celebrate the opening along with clinic staff, patients and their families, local councillors and other invited guests including Consultant Nephrologists Dr. Frank Kelly, Elizabeth Abernethy, Dr. Kesree Finnegan GP, members of the Irish Kidney Association, builder Tom O’Connor, developer Derek Kent, sub-contractors and suppliers.
In an ecumenical ceremony, Canon Arthur Minion and Fr. John O’Reilly blessed the patients, the staff and the new building which opened for dialysis treatments three days a week on January 17 and will begin opening six days a week from May 28, catering for up to 60 patients, many of whom previously had to travel to hospitals in Waterford and Dublin for treatment.
Minister Kehoe said the clinic owned by B.Braun and supported by the HSE, will immeasurably improve the quality of life for patients and their families.
‘Patients have spent thousands of hours travelling to Waterford for their treatment, which has meant additional stress and financial cost. This developmeent is a prime example of putting the needs of the patient first’.
‘It is of tremendous importance to Wexford and Ireland to have world class centres dedicated to the treatmentof patients with chronic renal failure. The fact that a firm like B.Braun, employing 58,000 people worldwide, has invested in Wexford is a major boost to the county’. said Minister Kehoe who welcomed the provision of a self-care service which gives patients the independence to self-dialyise if they wish. Leo Halpenny said the clinic took seven months to build and it made him ‘immensely proud to stand here today’ and see what had been achieved. Markus Strotmann said it was uplifting to attend the opening and to see at first hand the hard work and dedication that the staff give to their patients. Dr. Frank Kelly spoke about the excellent care offered to Wellstone Clinic patients who receive the highest quality treatment with the latest equipment and technology available, under the clinical governance of Waterford University Hospital. Wellstone Wexford currently employs 15 trained staff under the direction of clinic manager Debbie Macdonald who underlined the importance of the centre providing the highest quality dialysis to Wexford people in their own county. The number of staff is due to rise to 20 when the six days a week rota begins. Visitors enjoyed refreshments in a marquee in the garden and were treated to a tour of the new facilities during intervals when there were no dialysis treatments taking place.