Health « Thurles Information

University Hospital, Limerick – Most Overcrowded Yet Again

University Hospital Limerick (UHL), which services North Tipperary, yet again ‘Tops the Poll’ as the most overcrowded medical facility here in Ireland.

In fact the two hospitals serving the people of County Tipperary are today grossly overcrowded, while nationally 426 people are waiting for beds, according to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO).

Total patients in Co. Tipperary without a bed 101.

University Hospital Limerick (UHL) is as expected, worst hit, with 66 patients waiting on a bed. In South Tipperary’s General Hospital, Clonmel 35 patients currently remain on trolleys.

Nationally, of the 426 patients stated; 298 are waiting in emergency department, while 128 are in wards elsewhere in hospitals.

Despite current Local & European Elections the Silence Continues, however Fine Gael are not ruling out the possibility of an early General Election, so let’s vote accordingly.

Woman Awarded €66,000 Against Tipperary County Council.

A Tipperary woman who fell from her bicycle, causing serious injury to her back, when she skidded as she cycled near her home; has been awarded €66,000 in the High Court.

Ms Justice Bronagh O’Hanlon agreed that stones and debris on a tarmacadam surface on the lane on which she was travelling and where she was thrown, constituted “a nuisance and a danger to the public”.

Mrs Nuala Ryan aged 61, of St Bernadette’s Terrace, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary, had sued Tipperary County Council over the accident which occurred on January 4th, 2014; claiming that her injuries were caused, not by the Council’s failure to repair the road surface on the lane-way, but by alleged negligent design and overall construction.

Claiming no liability could be attached to them; Tipperary County Council denied this claim; contending that same gravel on which Mrs Ryan skidded had been identified as either the breakup of the actual surface or some other infill material which had been used to repair existing potholes, by a third party.

Mrs Ryan informed the court that having skidded and fallen on the gravel which she described as being similar to “marbles on top of a skating rink” she had become trapped and unable to move, before being assisted by two other female road users.

Having been brought to hospital, it was established she had received a wedged compression fracture, leaving her with no alternative but to wear a spinal brace for some months afterwards.

Tipperary Public Participation Network

What do you want your community to look like in 10 years?

Tipperary Public Participation Network (Tipperary PPN) are delighted to be rolling out a new National Initiative on Community well-being. The PPN is bringing together social inclusion, environment and community development voices in our communities to develop a “Well-being Vision Statement” that sets out their shared vision for County Tipperary.

What is Community Wellbeing?

Well-being is an increasingly common term that can describe wider conditions than just good physical and mental health, which we need as individuals and communities in order to have a better quality of life, a healthier environment and increased prosperity.

Some of these are things that we can easily measure e.g. the number of pre-school places, or the speed with which an ambulance can get to a sick person. Others are less easily measured, e.g. our pride of place, our heritage and the way in which we all look after each other.

All aspects of well-being are connected to each other. So, for example, if our natural environment is poor, it will affect our mental and physical health as well as our economy. In other words, all the parts of our community well-being are interconnected.

Let’s develop our vision for community well-being for the Cashel / Tipperary Municipal District.

Community Well-being Vision being developed in Cashel / Tipperary Municipal District, County Tipperary

So, what do we need for the well being of the community of Cashel / Tipperary?

That is the question being posed by Tipperary PPN, and we want to hear from all the groups and organisations in this area. Feed into this important vision for your area by starting a conversation and attending a public meeting on Wednesday, May 29th, 2019, in Kilfeacle Community Centre, Moatquarter, Kilfeacle, Co. Tipperary.

Remember
Date: Wednesday, 29th May, 2019
Location: Kilfeacle Community Tennis Club. E34 YP98
Time: 6:30pm- 9:00pm – Registration from 7:00pm
Refreshments on arrival.

Developing a Vision for Community well-being means thinking about what we have and what we need to help Cashel / Tipperary Municipal District to be as great as it can be, for us and for the many generations that will follow into the future.

All the information gathered on the above stated night, will be brought together and used to influence policy, thus guiding the work of the PPN and its representatives; in influencing policy and working towards achieving community goals.

On the night Tipperary PPN will look at community well-being under six headings as follows.

Social and community development.
Environment and sustainability.
Economy and resources.
Health (physical & mental).
Values, culture and meaning.
Participation, democracy and good governance.

By using the above six headings across all the country, we can see whether we resident in Tipperary have the same concerns and indeed causes for celebration, as do others.

Further information on the well-being vision which is been rolled out around the country can be found HERE .

Thurles Woman Loses Court Case Following A Fall In Local Car Park

A woman who slipped on a patch of icy ground in a Thurles car park three years ago; fracturing her ankle, has lost her action for damages before the High Court having sued Tipperary County Council.

Sixty one year old Mrs Mary Burke, Kylecrue, Drombane, Thurles, Co. Tipperary, had sued Tipperary County Council, following a serious fall which occurred in the Council car park, on February 15th, 2016. Mrs Burke had gone to a parking ticket pay station, which was on a raised concrete plinth, and having completed the transaction she stepped down onto a tarmacadam surface, before she slipping on ice.

The court heard that Mrs Burke, as a result of the fall, had suffered a very nasty fracture of her left ankle and had to be operated on to insert a medical plate and pins.

Mr Justice Kevin Cross stated in his judgement that he could not say that the subsidence in the car park surface, where the ice had accumulated, was due to any negligence or indeed bad workmanship by Tipperary Council.

Mr Justice Cross awarded costs of the one-day hearing against Mrs Burke, but stated that he would be pleased if Tipperary Council decided it would not enforce the costs order against her.

Note: New Legislation On Radon In Workplaces

New radiation protection legislation now requires all employers, in high radon areas, to test their workplace for the radioactive gas ‘Radon‘. Where levels are above the national reference level of 300 Becquerel per metre cubed, employers are then required to carry out work to ensure the reduction of these levels.

The above Radon Map **(Click Here To View In More Detail)** has five categories: less than 1%, 1 to 5%, 5 to **10%**, 10 to **20%** and greater than **20%**. If you live in an area designated as **‘greater than 20%’**, this means that more than **20%** *(1 in 5)* homes in that grid square are likely to have radon concentrations above the Reference Level.

At today’s National Radon Forum, attendees heard from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) about the requirements of this new legislation.

Details on protocol for measurement of Radon in homes & workplaces can be downloaded HERE

Speaking at today’s National Radon Forum Ms Laura Burke, (EPA Director General), said: “In Ireland, up to 300 cases of lung cancer each year are linked to Radon, which is a serious public health hazard. Employers now have responsibility to ensure that their employees are protected from exposure to this radioactive gas. Radon testing in workplaces is simple and inexpensive and, where necessary, reducing high radon levels in a building is also straightforward. The EPA and the HSA are working in partnership to support employers in implementing this legislation.”

Yvonne Mullooly, (Assistant Chief Executive, from the Health & Safety Authority) welcomed the new legislation stating: “In addition to the existing general duties on employers to address radioactive hazards, this new legislation provides employers with clear testing requirements for radon gas in their workplaces. The Authority looks forward to continued collaboration with the EPA in highlighting radon gas exposure in workplaces and supporting the ongoing work of the National Radon Control Strategy Co-ordination Group. Our inspectors will continue to raise awareness during their inspections of the potential for radon gas exposures and the need for appropriate risk assessments. We will continue to support employers by providing information and through our on-line risk assessment tool BeSMART www.BeSMART.ie, which includes radon as a hazard.”

Phase two of the National Radon Control Strategy is also being launched today at the 15th National Radon Forum in Dublin. Attendees will hear about the Government’s Strategy to tackle radon over the next 5 years and the research that is needed to support this work.

The EPA radon team are available to answer your queries at Email: radon@epa.ie or Tel: 1800 300 600.