‘Loss of emergency surgery would threaten acute status’
WITH the threat to emergency surgery at the South West Acute Hospital (SWAH) ever-increasing since claims made last week that it was to be withdrawn, a local campaign group has called on the Western Trust to publish the findings of a trust wide review on general surgical service provision.
Save Our SWAH have also called on the public to be ready to “mobilise” to fight for the future of the hospital.
Last Tuesday, SDLP Councillor Paul Blake (pictured) made the claim that emergency surgery was to be removed and despite the Department of Health saying no decisions have been made “yet” and the Western Trust stating there has been no suspension of services, Councillor Blake said there could be an announcement on this issue as early as next week.
“If we allow emergency surgery to be removed in our hospital that would potentially be the beginning of a domino effect,” said a spokesperson for the group.
“The removal of emergency surgery would no doubt threaten all of our acute services.
“We cannot allow Robin Swann to disregard the lives in rural Fermanagh.
“Emergency Surgery must be available instantly and by its nature daily in an acute hospital to cover accidents, emergency admissions through A&E, complex births, gallbladder surgery, and many more.
“Acute hospital services are all related and completely dependent on each other.”
The group also called for the Western Trust to liaise with the entire SWAH community about their plans.
“We are a unique rural community. Department of Health is aware we are an area of poverty and deprivation. Emergency surgery is essential in an area with significantly worse access to ambulances than the NI average and unsuitable in many areas for the air ambulance.
“We have mobilised as a community before, sadly this will be our biggest and most important community call to sustain emergency surgery and all emergency services,” the spokesperson added.
Councillor Blake has also called on the community to step up to save SWAH: “What we need to do now is to get people mobilised. People need to fight for the hospital at this stage.
“It’s people power that stopped these things happening before with the maternity unit and it needs to happen again to get people behind our campaign.
“Because the hospital is the heart of the community and if you are losing it you are losing something at the very core of your community.
“It needs to be kept on the edge of people’s lips as to what is happening.”
And despite the UUP coming out in a recent meeting to refute the claims made by Councillor Blake, he is resolute in that his sources are correct: “I wish I was scaremongering and then there wouldn’t be a threat hanging over the hospital and there wouldn’t be a threat to people’s jobs.
“The reality is this is very real.” Meanwhile, Sinn Féin MP for Fermanagh and South Tyrone, Michelle Gildernew (pictured) has requested an urgent meeting with Western Trust Chief Executive, Neil Guckian following the news.
“Enniskillen Hospital provides vital frontline health care to the community in Fermanagh South-tyrone.
“Some concerns regarding surgical services have been raised publicly and having raised these concerns with the Health Minister Robin Swann early last month I have now written to the Chief Executive Officer of the Western Trust requesting an urgent meeting to provide clarity.
“It is vital that the community in this largely rural area continues to have access to important health services going forward.
“We want our health services to deliver better health outcomes for the community and it is important Health Trusts work in partnership with those who use these services and the workers who deliver them to realise this goal.”
A request was sent to the Western Trust and Department of Health for an interview with Mr. Guckian and Mr. Swann however, these were declined.
A petition opposing any threat to take away emergency surgery from SWAH has also been set up and can be signed at https://tinyurl. com/2p8wk6r5