Endoscopy Project at Roscommon Hospital

Minister for Health, Dr James Reilly TD visited Roscommon Hospital today (Monday 12 May) to view plans for the construction of a new Endoscopy Department at the hospital.
 
The tendering process has now reached the evaluation stage and it is expected that the contractor will be appointed to the project in the coming weeks. An allocation of €5.5m has been approved for this development. Construction is expected to commence in June 2014 and will take one year to build.
 
The new facility will increase the endoscopy capacity of the hospital from 16 procedures per day currently to 30 procedures per day or 6,000 per annum.
 
Roscommon Hospital has been accredited by JAG to carry out endoscopies. The Hospital is now an approved centre for colorectal screening under the governance of the National Cancer Screening Service.
 
In 2013 a direct access service was set up for GPs who can refer patients for an Endoscope without having to wait for an Outpatient Appointment. This has greatly enhanced access to the service for patients.
 
The Endoscopy Department will be built above the existing Urgent Care Centre and will mean the addition of an extra floor (area 458m2) to this section of the hospital. The department will have an entrance adjacent to St Bridget’s ward with a separate lift and stairs. The new build will include:
 
•         A reception and a waiting area;
•         Two patient preparation rooms;
•         A consultation / examination room;
•         Two endoscopy procedure rooms;
•         A recovery area with a nurses’ observation area where patients rest immediately after the procedure;
•         A recovery area / lounge where patients move to when they are getting ready to go home; and
•         Decontamination, storage and equipment rooms.
 
The department will be open five days per week and will carry out endoscopy procedures for patients as day cases and for patients who are in hospital. The new department is designed to follow the flow of patients as they check in, have their procedure, spend time in the recovery areas and prepare to go home. The layout will also reduce stress for patients and help maintain privacy.
 
Elaine Prendergast, General Manager, Roscommon Hospital spoke of the significance of the project. She said, “This is an important development for Roscommon Hospital and I’d like to acknowledge the hard work by all the staff involved in getting the project to this stage.
 
“We are developing Roscommon Hospital as a centre of ‘local excellence’ and having achieved JAG accreditation for the Endoscopy Service already means that the endoscopy service here meets the highest possible standards of care not only for people of Roscommon but for patients from the catchment of the West / North West Hospitals Group. The accreditation measures standards in clinical quality, patient experience, workforce and training, comfort and dignity afforded to the patient, the timeliness of the procedure, the quality of the procedure and the speed and accuracy of communication with the patient and the referring doctor.
 
“As a smaller hospital we are focused on building on our strengths and that is providing high quality day and elective services with shorter waiting times and with easier access.”
 
Mr Noel Daly, Chairman of the West / North West Hospitals Group added, “The future growth in healthcare will be in the areas of ambulatory care (including chronic disease management and day surgery), diagnostics and rehabilitation and model 2 hospitals will specialise in providing these services. As such, Roscommon Hospital’s activity levels will increase in the coming years to meet the changing health requirements of the population. Already Roscommon Hospital has demonstrated the essential role that a model 2 can play as part of a Group of hospitals and, with the ongoing assistance of Minister Reilly and his Department, we will continue to support its development within the West / North West Hospitals Group.”
 
Photo Details:
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Minister for Health, Dr James Reilly TD visited Roscommon Hospital today to view plans for the construction of a new Endoscopy Department at the hospital. From left: Noel Daly, Chair of the West / North West Hospitals Group; Elaine Prendergast, General Manager, Roscommon Hospital; Minister Reilly; and Deputy Frank Feighan TD.