125km to the nearest hospital- wait, WHAT!?

[LondonBeer]

As you may or may not know, the A&E department of the hospital in my county (Roscommon) has been closed after we elected a party whose only guarantee to us was that they would keep our A&E open. Now, since they are a conservative party I did expect there to be cut backs but this is inhuman.

Translated - Ive shit my bed now Im going to complain that I have to lie in it. Which is ironic because their will be less auxiliaries never mind nurses to change my sheets.

 

[Ninjamedic]

Let me reiterate, our country is broke. I'm amazed they're even building a new hospital and because they are managing to set aside funds for one they need to put it in an area where it will be most effective and will be able to care for the most amount of people in the most efficient manner. That place just happens to be Dublin.

I really hate our country, I fully understand where you're coming from, but why couldn't we down grade the more routine procedures in Roscommon and send them to one of the larger hospitals instead?

It's not fair but it's realistic.
I know that Fine Gael promised that the hospital would stay open but Irish politicians aren't exactly world renowned for keeping election promises. Even still, they probably fully intended to keep it open but once they came into power and realised the true extent of our economic situation they had to do what was necessary. I doubt they would have taken that kind of public opinion hit lightly.

Funny since their attitude towards the Protesters and the Independents has been taking the piss. I need a drink.

 

[Ninjamedic]

As you may or may not know, the A&E department of the hospital in my county (Roscommon) has been closed after we elected a party whose only guarantee to us was that they would keep our A&E open. Now, since they are a conservative party I did expect there to be cut backs but this is inhuman.

Translated - Ive shit my bed now Im going to complain that I have to lie in it. Which is ironic because their will be less auxiliaries never mind nurses to change my sheets.

Everyone I know elected Independant TD's (should have put that there, sorry) and I expected the cuts to be in education and transport, not an essential service which removed will now jack up the death rate in our county.

I guess I am entitled to expect my family and friends to not die because they had an accident in the wrong place. Thank you for your educated and well thought-out post. I feel enlightened.

 

[Colour Scientist]

I really hate our country, I fully understand where you're coming from, but why couldn't we down grade the more routine procedures in Roscommon and send them to one of the larger hospitals instead?

Because they're routine but necessary and are much more frequently needed than A&E, especially in rural areas. A vast majority of people who arrive at the A&E don't need to be there, they need to see a GP or there is nothing wrong with them at all. Whereas, those routine procedures take place every single day and it makes more sense to keep those functions up and running rather than sending them to already overcrowded hospitals.

I understand your worry with regards to car crashes but the A&E facilities in the larger hospitals are much better equipped to cope with that kind of thing, even if it does take longer to get there.

Funny since their attitude towards the Protesters and the Independents has been taking the piss. I need a drink.

Well, how could they react to it? You close a hospital local people don't want closed and no matter what you do you're still going to be the bad guy. The population expected way too much of this Government when they voted them in.

Things were supposed to get better, and they have to some extent but what people forget is that we were neck deep in shit and now we're, I don't know, about waist deep.

 

[inFAMOUSCowZ]

That just sucks and the worst part is the people promised to keep the place open. I hope you get this worked out.

 

[Ninjamedic]

I really hate our country, I fully understand where you're coming from, but why couldn't we down grade the more routine procedures in Roscommon and send them to one of the larger hospitals instead?

Because they're routine but necessary and are much more frequently needed than A&E, especially in rural areas. A vast majority of people who arrive at the A&E don't need to be there, they need to see a GP or there is nothing wrong with them at all. Whereas, those routine procedures take place every single day and it makes more sense to keep those functions up and running rather than sending them to already overcrowded hospitals.

I understand your worry with regards to car crashes but the A&E facilities in the larger hospitals are much better equipped to cope with that kind of thing, even if it does take longer to get there.

I was also referring to the chances of heart attacks or similar instances among older people but I guess your right, I just hope the closures don't spiral out of control.

Funny since their attitude towards the Protesters and the Independents has been taking the piss. I need a drink.

Well, how could they react to it? You close a hospital local people don't want closed and no matter what you do you're still going to be the bad guy. The population expected way too much of this Government when they voted them in.

Things were supposed to get better, and they have to some extent but what people forget is that we were neck deep in shit and now we're, I don't know, about waist deep.

I was referring to the Dress code BS directed at Flanagan and the other independents and the whole findings for the closure being bullshit, if they just said "We have no choice" then I would have understood, but when the start to blatantly lie and falsify information, that's when I get pissed.

 

[Colour Scientist]

I was referring to the Dress code BS directed at Flanagan and the other independents and the whole findings for the closure being bullshit, if they just said "We have no choice" then I would have understood, but when the start to blatantly lie and falsify information, that's when I get pissed.

The dress code thing is a pile of shit, I can't disagree with you there but, to be fair, they did say that they had no choice with regards to Roscommon a number of times but when it comes to issues like this people don't accept those kinds of answers.


When it comes to hospitals (obviously an extremely sensitive issue) "we don't have the money or the resources" won't cut it with most locals.

 

[Ninjamedic]

I was referring to the Dress code BS directed at Flanagan and the other independents and the whole findings for the closure being bullshit, if they just said "We have no choice" then I would have understood, but when the start to blatantly lie and falsify information, that's when I get pissed.

The dress code thing is a pile of shit, I can't disagree with you there but, to be fair, they did say that they had no choice with regards to Roscommon a number of times but when it comes to issues like this people don't accept those kinds of answers.


When it comes to hospitals (obviously an extremely sensitive issue) "we don't have the money or the resources" won't cut it with most locals.

That's true, although I still think it wouldn't have been as much as a fiasco if it wasn't for the falsified figures.

Thanks for the responses Colour, it's great to get a decent discussion of this with an Irish escapist.

 

[RelexCryo]

(Moved from Religion and Politics since it died after 3 posts)

Since no-one has mentioned this I'll bring it up. As you may or may not know, the A&E department of the hospital in my county (Roscommon) has been closed after we elected a party whose only guarantee to us was that they would keep our A&E open. Now, since they are a conservative party I did expect there to be cut backs but this is inhuman. The only reason we needed this hospital was for the A&E Department since the other procedures there can be easily be handled in Galway or Sligo. Now its closed if there is an accident (with a large amount of elderly people and farming being the main industry making accidents probable) the ambulances could take up to 2.5 hours to get to the accident and then get the victim to the hospital. Its a death sentence for anyone unlucky enough to have a serious injury or a heart attack.

And then as the final insult we find that the "evidence" that the closure was based on was debunked as horseshit.




So, yeah I'm PISSED. It's nice knowing that the kiddies in Dublin are going to get a wickle new ward and if my father or mother are in a accident they're dead. Can anyone justify this to me!?

Your hospital doesn't have an Emergency Room(A&E Dep)? That is just epicly stupid. And your county is the geographical center of Ireland no less. And people complain about America's healthcare. Sheesh.

 

[Brotherofwill]

First Henry scores that goal and now this??!!?

 

[Ninjamedic]

Honestly OP, voting for conservatives in the hopes that they'd keep up public spending? I know it was one of their campaign promises, but we all know what a bunch of utter twatrackets conservative politicians are about these things.

Around here we voted for independent TD's, my neighbors don't like the new PM at all. Over here every electable party is conservative (Actual conservative, not right-wing), so I honestly expected them to control the damage Fianna Fail did.

Oh, you know Fianna Fail? The party that screwed us and europe for 15 years? They're the liberals. Yeah, our country is screwed up.

 

[MrFluffy-X]

fucking conservatives! Always a bunch of arseholes

 

[Ninjamedic]

snip

I'm a year from voting but I'll give you a general summary:

The main political divide in our country is the "Civil War Divide" as every goverment up to this point consisted of one of these parties:

Fianna Fail: Centre-left, formed from the part of Sinn Fein which broke off after the civil war and became the first opposition in the country. Economically they are center-left but in terms of civil rights they are infamously conservative. Responsible for the unchallenged control of the country the Catholic Church enjoyed for around 50 years. Originally tied to the southern IRA until the late 1930's. Ireland's worst leaders (Charlie Haughey, Bertie Ahern) all came from FF. They were also aggressively nationalistic opposing the British on a LOT of occasions. Infamously corrupt and responsible for the over-borrowing from europe.

Fine Gael: Centre-right , formed from Ireland's first government's party, Cumman Na Ngeadheal, the ACA (Fascist organization known as the Blueshirts) and former Unionist MP's. Economically conservative (not right-wing, actual conservative), socially liberal (after the 60's anyway). Their most significant leader was Garret Og Fitzgerald, as leaders went he was alright, helped with the peace process and promoted reconciliation with the North. They usually have less support than FF so they usually form coalition governments with Labour.

They're usually in the spotlight most of the time as they are the only parties with a realistic chance of forming a government, the rest usually possess 10-15% of the vote:

Labour: Founded by James Larkin (I think) in the 1910's. Basically like Labour in England, as they usually form coalition governments with FG I don't know much about their policies other than they're left economically but since FG is center based, you know.

Sinn Fein: We all know who these are, political wing of the IRA, broke off in the 90's to help with the peace process and recently entered southern politics. Insane Republicans, with honestly no clue to run a government. (Don't pay europe back, that won't backfire! Honest!)

Green party: Does exactally as it says on the tin, until they were made into the Starscream of Fianna Fail, on the way out after being gutted in the last election.

The rest are independents and the united left alliance.

Ming Flanagan is the most significant of the independents. (look him up on wikipedia) He and Joe Higgins (the Socialist TD) are among the only sane people in the government.

That's my view on the parties, apologies for ant inaccuracies or bullshit in my post.

 

[TehCookie]

Shouldn't they use helicopters then? Half of my family lives in a tiny town in the middle of nowhere and they don't have ambulances there, they have helicopters since the hospital is so far away.

 

[Ninjamedic]

Shouldn't they use helicopters then? Half of my family lives in a tiny town in the middle of nowhere and they don't have ambulances there, they have helicopters since the hospital is so far away.

I've said it before I'll say it again, to my knowledge we don't have helicopters.

 

[donscarletti]

Why don't they just put a hospital in the middle of Ireland and then EVERYONE is close to a hospital.

 

[Quaxar]

And an Air Ambulance could probably cover the distance too and from Dublin in under 2.5 miles, furthermore if it is a serious life threatening emergency they can receive treatment from a non-A&E hospital while waiting for transport, so the move shouldn't be endangering them too much.

You've never seen the Road system in the west, When I said 2.5 hours, i meant galway, dublin could be up to 4 depending on traffic.

Luckily, Air Ambulances don't need roads

And, unfortunately, are generally pretty shitty in more than one way. They are nice for special things, but you just can't use them as your only healthcare provider.

Dare I say I am amazed that the whole ambulance system in Ireland seems to depend on the cars being dispatched from the hospitals. While that may be nice and everything for cities it seems like such a waste of time in the countryside.
What's wrong with a small base in the county where a few ambulances are stationed? At least you'd have something then.