Waterford Oireachtas members have confirmed that the HSE is ready to appoint a design team for the second cath lab at University Hospital Waterford.

At a meeting with South/Southwest Hospital Group CEO Gerry O’Dwyer and Chief Operations Officer Gerard O’Callaghan this morning at UHW, local Oireachtas members were told that the project has been identified as a ‘priority’ within the new Capital Plan for 2019 and also by Minister for Health Simon Harris TD.

A senior member of the HSE’s Estates Project Management Team attended the meeting to brief Oireachtas members on the plans and discuss preliminary designs. Also present were members of the Cardiology team at UHW, including Dr John O’Dea, Consultant Interventional Cardiologist, Dr Paddy Owens, Consultant Interventional Cardiologist and Catherine Dwyer, Regional Cardiology / CIVS Manager, along with UHW’s new General Manager Grace Rothwell.

The new lab, which will cost €4.9 million to construct and fit out, will have the capacity for both diagnostic and interventional work and will be constructed over the existing ground floor Cardiology Department. The plans include the construction of a new recovery/ day ward adjacent to the second lab.

It was agreed at the meeting by both medical staff and Oireachtas members that the construction of a permanent interventional cath lab was the best option to expand cardiology services in the region, with consultants noting that the provision of a new recovery/ day ward adjacent to the second lab was a welcome addition to the plans. The existing day ward is located at the other side of the hospital to the cath lab.

HSE management confirmed to Oireachtas members that provision of the second cath lab has been identified as a priority project within the new Capital Plan for 2019 and that the process to recruit a new full-time interventional cardiologist at University Hospital is to be fast-tracked. This new posting is required to facilitate extending the opening hours of the existing lab from 8am to 8pm, Monday to Friday and also to support the second interventional lab when it opens.

Waterford Oireachtas members said they were satisfied, following the two-hour meeting, that all the necessary building blocks were being put in place to improve on existing services and ensure a sustainable cardiology service for the people of the south east into the future:

“We are fully in agreement with UHW’s Cardiology team that a second, fully-interventional cath lab is the only sustainable option to service both the current and future cardiology needs of patients in the south east. We look forward to the speedy appointment of the project’s Design Team and to seeing physical progress on the new cath lab in the months ahead.”

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