The HSE’s Service Plan for 2019 has been released and includes funding for investment in multiple improvements to Galway’s hospitals.
Two new cardiac Cath labs at University Hospital Galway have been allocated €2.3 million in the service plan.
Cath labs diagnose problems with the heart and circulatory system and are an essential part of timely cardiac care.
In addition €700,000 is being provided for the creation of a new IT room at UHG.
A proper IT infrastructure is essential for as complex a system as an acute hospital where prompt and proper records are needed to save lives.
Construction is also due to begin on a new radiotherapy treatment centre at UHG this year to improve the quality of cancer care across the West of Ireland.
But this is one of a number of projects which has faced speculation of further delays due to a funding shortfall in the HSE and the rising costs of the new national Maternity and Children’s hospitals.
Galway West TD Seán Kyne said the plan will also see improvements to Primary Care and Ambulance Services at UGH and Merlin Park hospitals.
One of the biggest threats facing healthcare in Galway is the serious overcrowding in the emergency department that left over 7,000 people on trolleys this year.
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has said the HSE’s plan for 2019 doesn’t include funding for a proposed framework for improving nursing services.
