Downe to be centre for eyecare excellence

Downe to be centre for eyecare excellence

24 October 2018

THE Downe Hospital is to become a centre of excellence for cataract surgery.

Under new Department of Health plans outlined yesterday for the delivery of a range of dedicated day surgery services across the Province, the Downpatrick hospital will be at the forefront of a new model of care.

Health chiefs have described the reorganisation of routine cataract and varicose veins services as an “important landmark” and the new prototype cataract service at the Downe could be be fully operational as early as December. 

Under the new care model, the Downe, Mid-Ulster and South Tyrone hospitals will be responsible for delivering cataract surgery for patients from across Northern Ireland, with Lisburn’s Lagan Valley Hospital selected as one of three elective care centres for varicose veins surgery.

News of the new service at the Downpatrick hospital comes after a series of recent positive announcements about the appointment of additional consultants to strengthen its medical team, with work also underway to secure a new MRI scanner to enhance the range of diagnostic services available locally.

The new cataract service is designed to significantly reduce surgery waiting lists, with the new consultant-led, elective care centre providing routine day surgery procedures at an enhanced outpatient department.

Over the coming weeks, a project team will work alongside the Health and Social Care Board and South Eastern Trust to develop detailed implementation plans.

The performance of the new prototype centre at the Downe will be closely monitored and evaluated to inform the development of a model for all day case procedures.

Health chiefs insist the creation of the new elective care centres represents a “significant step” forward in the transformation of health care and clearly demonstrates the benefits to patients. They say the new regional centres will secure important progress in the efficiency and effectiveness of care.

The Department of Health has confirmed that crucially, the new centres will operate on separate sites from urgent and emergency hospital care, ensuring they will not be competing for operating rooms and other resources, leading to fewer cancellations of operations.

Health chiefs say while some patients may be asked to travel further for their treatment, they will be seen faster and have a better experience.

Department of Health Permanent Secretary Richard Pengelly described the development of elective care centres is a key step in the transformation of hospital services in Northern Ireland.

“The current waiting times for hospital surgery are totally unacceptable and elective care centres are central to our plans to eradicate this scourge on our service,” he explained.

“Delivering services on fewer hospital sites will increase the capacity of the health system and allow us to deliver more procedures. 

“While this will be an important step forward, I would emphasise that additional investment is still needed to clear the significant backlog of patients who are waiting for an operation.”

Mr Pengelly confirmed that while some patients may have to travel a bit further for their day surgery, the clear trade off will be a significant reduction in the time spent waiting for that surgery.

He added: “This is transformation in action and it is very fitting that we are announcing it almost two years to the day from the publication of the Delivering Together document.”

Mr Hugh McCaughey, the chief executive of the South Eastern Trust which manages the Downe Hospital, said the organisation was delighted to host the new prototype cataract service. 

“The Trust believes that both the Downe and Lagan Valley hospitals are well placed to continue to play a significant role in the further development of elective care for the local and wider population,” he added.

South Down MP Chris Hazzard also welcomed the announcement.

“This news is not only a positive boost for the Downe, but for the wider community which over the years has, unfortunately, witnessed the downgrading of some services and the loss of others at the hospital,” he said.

“The delivery of a new regional cataract service in Downpatrick will see additional resources invested in the Downe, helping build on the excellent service already provided by all the staff who work there.”

Mr Hazzard said the new regional service will also provide a boost for the local economy, given the number of people from a wide area who will be travelling to the Downe for medical procedures.

He said he met recently with senior South Eastern Trust officials who outlined the work they were doing to bring new services to the Downe.

The MP added: “This is being achieved and hopefully it represents the green shoots of recovery and will act as a catalyst for the continued growth and enhancement of the Downpatrick hospital, resulting in more consultants working locally, growing the hospital for the future.”