An action plan to address issues at University Hospital Kerry is very near completion.
Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly says direct actions have been ongoing since September of last year, to address issues being experienced at UHK.
These include emergency department waiting times, waiting lists, and frequent cancellations of elective procedures.
One of the actions taken was the formation of a review team, which is currently drafting an action plan for the hospital.
The review team includes members of Acute Operations, Special Delivery Unit, the National Integrated Care for Older Persons, and representatives from the South Southwest Hospital Group.
Minister Donnelly said the review team has been on site in UHK and has engaged with stakeholders in the hospital.
This was to identify the required improvements to achieve and sustain effective operations at the hospital, and to support clinical teams in UHK.
The Health Minister says the review team will share the findings and recommendations of its draft action plan with UHK and the South Southwest Hospital Group when it is completed.
The group’s Interim Chief Operations Officer has also been on site in UHK since September for two days a week initially, to identify delays within patient flow streams and solutions which address associated risks.
In November, consultants at the hospital wrote to the CEO of the group to outline a litany of issues at UHK.
Minister Donnelly provided the update in response to a parliamentary question from Kerry Fine Gael TD Brendan Griffin.