Today marks a historic moment for the Southeast as the region will now receive a full 24/7 heart attack intervention service at the Southeast cardiac unit at University Hospital Waterford.
This monumental decision was made at the cabinet meeting yesterday, with the government approving funding to upscale the service. It’s a long-overdue victory and one that will undoubtedly save lives in the future.
Speaking on Morning Mix, former Waterford TD Matt Shanahan said it was thanks to the tireless work of local doctors like Dr. Aidan Buckley, Dr. Mark Doyle, Dr. Niall Caldwell, and Dr. Rob Landers. These medical professionals were instrumental in bringing attention to the risks posed by the lack of proper cardiac care in the Southeast.
This new service will operate 24/7. Presently a 7 day rota is in place for just three weeks. In those three weeks alone, over 12 heart attack patients were treated during weekends—numbers that far exceeded the original estimates. This highlights the enormous demand for this service in the Southeast, a region that has long been underserved in terms of emergency cardiac care.
While this is undoubtedly a landmark day, there are still challenges ahead. The most pressing issue is securing the proper funding and recruiting the necessary specialists to staff the 24/7 service. The funding allocated to this service must be equivalent to what is provided for other 24/7 centers across the country.
Mr Shanahan said, “If we are expected to provide the same level of care, we need to ensure that the financial resources match the need. Recruiting the right specialists will also be critical to the success of this service. However, I am optimistic. With the right funding, there will be specialists who are willing to relocate to the Southeast. We have already seen qualified professionals in the region, but funding has been the major barrier to hiring them. Now that the necessary resources are on the table, we can expect to see qualified candidates ready to take on the roles.”
“The government’s commitment to this initiative is a step in the right direction, but we must remain vigilant to ensure that the service is fully implemented. I am hopeful that within the next 12 months, we will see the full operation of the 24/7 cardiac service in the Southeast. With the proper funding and recruitment, this is an achievable goal, and it will undoubtedly make a significant difference in the lives of countless people in our region.”
