Meeting underway on hospital care for Midwest

A meeting to establish a common consensus for a new acute hospital for the Midwest region is underway this Monday morning (October 13) at the South Court Hotel, Limerick.

The event was organised by Joe Cooney TD (Clare). Deputy Cooney has invited all Midwest Oireachtas members and Chairpersons of the local authorities in Clare, Limerick and North Tipperary to this meeting.

This meeting will be held on the same day that the Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, is scheduled to open the new 96 bed block at UHL.

The Mid West Hospital Campaign has welcomed the event organised by Deputy Cooney. A spokesperson said: "This meeting and much of the political commentary, since HIQA's announcement, has overlooked the driving force that brought us to this point .... the communities themselves. It was the people who refused to accept the neglect of healthcare in the Midwest. It was the people of Clare, Limerick and North Tipperary who rallied, organised, protested and refused to give up the fight for safe and accessible health care.

"The people deserve transparency, honesty and a publicly funded hospital system that meets the region's needs. We do not want or need another private hospital."