Healthcare options on Bank Holiday Weekend
UL Hospitals Group (ULHG) and HSE Mid West Community Healthcare (MWCH) are encouraging the public in the region to know their available healthcare options ahead of this Bank Holiday Weekend.
ULHG is promoting Injury Units (walk-in) and Medical Assessment Units (GP referrals) as key alternatives to attendance at the Emergency Department (ED) in UHL, and additional staff are rostered across hospital and community services to enhance patient flow and access to services throughout the long weekend.
ULHG and MWCH have focused on integrated initiatives at all stages of the patient journey - from hospital avoidance to discharge/transfers - to meet demand. Hospital Management Team meetings will continue daily throughout the weekend.
MWCH will support patient discharges from ULHG across the Bank Holiday weekend by expanding Community Intervention Team services, which will run from 8am-8pm daily. MWCH will also provide essential equipment to patients leaving hospitals such as hospital beds and mattresses through the Aids and Appliances Department. Additional allied health professionals (Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, and Medical Social Work) will assist with facilitating patient discharges from ULHG on Bank Holiday Monday. GP out-of-hours services will also be operational throughout the weekend, ensuring timely access to care and improving hospital avoidance.
Relatives and loved ones of hospital inpatients are asked to continue booking visits through the UL Hospitals Group Visitor App, available online at ulhgvisitor.com, which allows quick and convenient booking of a time slot within the visiting hours on all hospital sites.
In UHL, additional emergency medicine consultants and nursing staff are rostered for triage in ED, and senior ULHG management will be on site every day. Additional radiology support is in place over the weekend to support diagnostic reporting.
The community paramedic is rostered for the three days of the holiday weekend, and the region’s Pathfinder service run by ULHG Allied Health staff and the HSE National Ambulance Service to provide safe ED-alternative care at home to people over 65 years, is operational on Bank Holiday Monday, 8am-8pm.
With ED open 24-7 for emergency care, ULHG is emphasising the importance of the Injury Unit and Medical Assessment Unit pathways in decreasing pressure on the ED at UHL and ensuring timely medical treatment for patients with less acute medical conditions.
There has been a significant increase in activity at Injury Units and Medical Assessment Units in recent years, as the public become more aware of these treatment options and UL Hospitals Group continues to invest in services at its three smaller ‘Model 2’ hospitals.
•Injury Units:
Injury Units provide timely treatment for injuries such as sprains, breaks, cuts and burns that are not threatening to life or limb but which require prompt medical attention.
•Medical Assessment Units:
MAU assessments are booked by GPs for the diagnosis and treatment of patients referred with such medical conditions as chest infections, COPD, pneumonia, urinary tract infections, fainting episodes, clots in the leg, anaemia and non-acute cardiac problems. The increased capacity in MAUs provides an additional ‘pressure valve’ for ED at busy periods, as Emergency Medicine consultants can refer to the units also.
It is essential that unwell medical patients do NOT attend MAUs without a GP referral.
Dr Damien Ryan, Emergency Medicine Consultant and ULHG Clinical Director of Urgent & Emergency Care, urged members of the public to familiarise themselves with the full range of treatment options available in UL Hospitals Group, especially the access arrangements around Injury Units and Medical Assessment Units.