Councillor MJ Crowe wrote to all the Fianna Fáil public representatives on the western seaboard and other parts of the country this past weekend to seek their support to put pressure on the Government to ensure that the planned upgrade of University Hospital Galway to a ‘Model Four’ hospital is included in the revised National Development Plan.
“I understand housing is a priority, I understand the outer bypass is a priority, I understand there are many serious priorities, and I support all of these. But I honestly believe that the delivery of a ‘Model Four’ hospital is the most critical piece of infrastructure for Galway and the West of Ireland over the next 10 years,” he said.
“Only in recent times has the masterplan for this entire site been finalised, which is a clear roadmap on what is required and where it is required on every inch of this site.
“The people of this entire region require and deserve what I can only describe as healthcare equalisation. I do not think it is fair or right that the people that I represent, and indeed people well beyond where I represent, should be discriminated against when it comes to modern-day healthcare. Does anybody think it is right that a person who is living on the eastern seaboard of the country has a significantly better chance of more positive outcomes in certain healthcare treatments than somebody living on the western seaboard of the country? I do not believe it is. All public representatives in the region need to come together, need to work together to ensure that this ‘Model Four’ hospital is included in the National Development Plan.
“Cancer care treatment, maternity services and indeed many more services need to be brought up to an equal level in our hospital that they are in many other hospitals throughout the country. It is no longer acceptable for people on this side of the country to experience second-level health treatment service because of the lack of investment in modern-day infrastructure, such as buildings and some equipment. We have top-class medics and an all-round top-class staff, but their working conditions do not reflect this. These staff and their patients need to and deserve to work in a modern-day hospital, and the only way this can be done is through significant investment.
“My understanding is that over the next 10 years, a €2 billion investment is what is required; this is €200 million a year from a national budget of well north of 20 billion. We cannot accept, nor should we accept, for this project to be excluded from the National Development Plan. If this is not included, it will set the entire delivery of necessary modern-day health treatment services in this entire region back for another decade.
“I am hopeful that the Government will listen to the real needs and requirements of the people in this region. To put it into context, the population of this entire region, who are reliant on health treatment services from University College Hospital Galway, is bigger than the population of Dublin. The west has been left behind by multiple governments over the last number of decades, and I am asking this Government, for the sake of our people, not to repeat this,” concluded Crowe.
