Sir, – The Hiqa report of the investigation into the quality, safety and governance of the care provided by the Adelaide and Meath Hospital, incorporating the National Children’s Hospital, for patients who require acute admission, which we sought on behalf of our patients since 2009, is to be applauded (Breaking News, May 17th Home News, May 18th).
The public admission of regret by the board of Tallaght Hospital in failing to act appropriately on the concerns which we, the emergency medicine consultants, raised repeatedly since 2009 about the privacy, dignity and safety of patients who were boarded on an open corridor reflects a now changed corporate culture at Tallaght hospital.
We welcome the new interim hospital board of Tallaght Hospital’s press release and its acceptance of all the Hiqa findings and intention to implement the Hiqa recommendations in full. We endorse Minister for Health James Reilly’s call on the Medical Council to investigate the serious risks to patients from overcrowding as we had requested it to do back in October 2010.
We also welcome the current Minister’s public promise to end emergency department overcrowding nationwide by year’s end 2012.
Patients requiring emergency care are among the most vulnerable in our healthcare system as they have neither choice nor control over their circumstances. We expect for our patients the very best of care as we would for either ourselves or our loved ones. We believe all healthcare workers have a moral and ethical duty to be their patients’ protectors and advocates and must never tolerate any attempts to threaten that role.
An end to the dangerous practice of emergency department overcrowding is long overdue for the safety of both patients and frontline staff in Irish emergency departments. – Yours, etc,