24/11/2023
We were delighted to welcome Department of Health Permanent Secretary Peter May to both South West Acute Hospital and Omagh Hospital and Primary Care Complex recently.
Mr May took time to engage with Senior Clinical Leaders, Nursing and Support staff working in our theatres and elective ward to hear about the Trust’s theatre utilisation programme which has seen SWAH and Omagh Hospital theatres reaching their full commissioned sessions each week. He also visited the Human Milk bank at SWAH.
The Trust has been incrementally building the capacity for elective operating lists in SWAH and Omagh Hospital theatres to help reduce waiting lists. Between 1 January 2023 – 31 October 2023 SWAH has seen a total of 1,097 patients operated on and for the same period Omagh Hospital and Primary Care Complex has performed 2,514 surgeries.
Commenting on his visit Mr May said:
“I want to acknowledge the hard work and commitment of the excellent teams within the Elective Overnight Stay Centre (EOSC) at the South West Acute Hospital and the Day Procedure Centre at Omagh Hospital. The teams have worked extremely hard to build capacity and reduce wait times for patients.
“The Elective Overnight Stay Centre and the Day Procedure Unit Centre were established as part of the wider reform of elective care and it’s clear that they are both good examples of how health reform can deliver for patients. Not only are both centres providing sessions for Western Trust patients, they are also undertaking regional sessions meaning patients from across Northern Ireland are benefitting.”
Welcoming the Permanent Secretary to SWAH and Omagh Hospital, Western Trust Chief Executive Neil Guckian said:
“Our staff have been working exceptionally hard to make our theatre utilisation programme such a success. By working innovatively and making the best use of our resources they have reached the target of rebuilding our theatre capacity back to funded levels.
“Patients will benefit greatly by not only receiving first class patient care in state-of-the-art theatres but will also see reduced surgical waiting times as a result.
“Thank-you and well done to everyone involved.”
