Minister assures Daisy Hill ‘here to stay’ as hospital could host ‘mega-clinics’

It comes as Health Minister Mike Nesbitt assured people living in Newry, as well as those in Enniskillen and Coleraine, “that their local hospitals are here to stay and that they have specific roles”.

The Minister was speaking as he announced plans to reduce waiting lists recently.

During a statement at Stormont Mr Nesbitt announced that he will be allocating £10 million towards mega-clinics to help an estimated 20,000 additional patients.

“As Members are aware, mega-clinics provide groups of patients with a one-stop shop that can involve, for example, surgical review and anaesthetic preoperative assessment in a single appointment,” he said.

“Other initiatives for the year ahead involve targeting long waits of four years or more, including hip, knee and other orthopaedic treatments, tonsillectomies, hernia treatment, gallbladder removal and colonoscopy.

“Funding will also be targeted at specialist procedures where there are long waits impacting particularly on women and children. This will include women waiting on gynaecology mesh removal procedures and children waiting for procedures such as percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube fitting, squints and scoliosis procedures.”

During questions, SDLP member for Newry and Armagh, Justin McNulty said that since Mr Nesbitt had taken up his post, he had been “tormenting” him about the reintroduction of the cross-border healthcare scheme.

“Along with other Members, I was seeking to represent the desires and needs of our constituents who have been languishing on waiting lists, in fear and, often, in pain and with impairments, so this will bring huge hope and relief to those people,” he said.

“Minister, you mentioned the implementation plan for the introduction of mega clinics, and you also said that no hospital will be closed, which is wonderful to hear. That will be reassuring for the people of Newry, south Armagh and south Down. Will Daisy Hill be a mega-clinic under the implementation plan?”

Mr Nesbitt responded: “I welcome the Member's comments.

“Will Daisy Hill be a mega-clinic? If the question is, ‘Will there be mega-clinics at Daisy Hill?’, the answer will probably be yes.

“The only mega-clinic that I have visited was at Belfast City Hospital. It is about using space and workforce on a Saturday.

“In the clinic that I saw, for example, a lot of patients who had been on waiting lists for a long time had come for validation, basically, to be asked, ‘Do you still need the procedure?’, and, ‘Have you got worse over the years?’.

“Patients also had their pre-operative anaesthetic consultation there. The patients whom I observed on that Saturday at Belfast City Hospital were told, ‘You will be in the Mater Hospital next week’; it is that good.

“At the moment, I do not have the detail on where the mega-clinics will be located, but I see no reason why Daisy Hill should not be on the list of prospective venues.”

A waiting list reimbursement scheme was also announced, allowing people to claim back costs when they receive treatments outside Northern Ireland, subject to qualifying criteria.