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 In Tipperary, motorists, particularly around Thurles, are being warned to be especially careful.
Road temperatures continue to drop and snow is falling in many parts of the country. Conditions on secondary and minor roads are treacherous. Drive with extreme care and remember gentle maneuvers are the key to safe driving.
Motorists are experiencing very icy road conditions on the N7 between Moneygall and Nenagh, and extremely icy conditions also exists on the bridge at Fiddown, connecting the N24 Carrick-on-Suir Rd and the Portlaw Rd (R680).
Motorists are advised, during this expected week long cold spell, to drive with extreme care coming up to Christmas.
Remember, the life you loose may not be your own.
 Visitor admissions have been severely restricted at Nenagh General Hospital, Co.Tipperary following an outbreak of the Winter Vomiting Virus.
All persons wishing to visit are asked to contact hospital staff before entering any of the wards.
We understand that at least five cases of the virus have been confirmed.
The Norovirus usually lasts only two to three days, however it is highly infectious and can be considered extremely unpleasant, as symptoms include projectile vomiting, diarrhoea and abdominal pain.
Outbreaks of norovirus infection often occur in closed or semi-closed communities, such as long-term care facilities, overnight camps, hospitals, prisons, dormitories, and cruise ships etc where the infection spreads very rapidly.
The illness is highly infectious and can be spread by:
-Direct contact with vomit or diarrhoea.
-From someone who is ill, especially if personal hygiene is not good.
-From the air around someone who has just vomited.
-From contaminated food.
Anyone affected should drink plenty of fluids and maintain strict hygiene levels.
Infection control measures are now firmly in place at Nenagh Hospital.
The Health Service Executive (HSE) cannot reuse its crutches and walking aids due to health and safety reasons.
No this is not a joke, the HSE has confirmed that this year it will spend €16.24 million of taxpayers money on new wheelchairs, crutches and walking aids in the Western HSE region.
The spend this year represents an 8 per cent rise on the €15 million spent on these aids just last year, to service the counties of Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim, Clare, Galway, Mayo, Roscommon, Limerick and our own beloved North Tipperary.
These various aids are issued to patients at no cost to their users and in most cases clients are not requested to return same after use.
With the HSE now facing cuts of over €1 billion, which will affect front line services in this above stated region, one must now ask the question, “Is there anyone in this green island still capable of keeping an eye on the shop”?
Useful Hint For HSE Management: Our local Supermarkets look for a €2 deposit to borrow a trolley for shopping, with same being fully refunded when the trolley is returned. Supermarket managers state that loss of trolleys, since they introduced this system, is now practically nil. However this is not good news for the trolley manufacturers.
Nenagh Hospital Action Group Chairman, Christy Hartigan has given a guarded welcome to a recent announcement by Deputy Michael Lowery and warned the people of Tipperary against listening to empty promises being peddled by politicians.
Earlier this week, North Tipperary Independent Dáil Deputy, Michael Lowry confirmed that following recent discussions with government officials, funding is to be immediately released to begin the necessary work on a new ‘Endoscopy Unit’ at Nenagh hospital. He also announced that funding is now also secured for a new lift system to ensure accessibility to the proposed new surgical theatre suite.
Mr. Hartigan stated:
“In my opinion this is a case of promised money being ‘recycled’. This money has been announced again and again on numerous previous occasions. This has been going on for years and years and its just constantly promise after promise, one after the other”.
He also confirmed that he and his committee would not believe one solitary word from any politician, even if they saw physical  proof of work actually beginning at Nenagh hospital.
The Health Service Executive (HSE) presently stands correctly accused of prematurely removing essential emergency services from North Tipperary, without firstly providing the promised extra capacity required at the Mid Western Regional Hospital in Limerick.
It emerged in October last, that the contract for the construction of a new critical care block promised for the regional hospital at Dooradoyle, Limerick, has not been awarded, while the board of the HSE has yet to even approve the project.
Under the reorganisation plan for hospital services in the Mid West Region, which was proposed in the controversial Teamwork Report, 24-hour accident and emergency facilities were removed from Nenagh hospital earlier this year.
The HSE had promised that the Critical Care Block, comprising an Intensive Care Unit, High Dependency Unit and Coronary Care Unit, would be fully provided at the Regional Hospital in Dooradoyle.
It had also been promised that the facility would be commissioned before the end of 2010. However, the HSE has confirmed that it is not now likely to be completed until mid 2011 at the very earliest.
I think our readers can fully understand that Mr. Hartigan’s views are more than justified on this occassion.
What do you our readers think? Your comments please.
Shannondoc the company which provides an “out-of-hours” medical service in the Midwest, servicing 275,000 people last year, has posted an annual loss of €66,329. The company in 2007 recorded a slight profit of €5,800 after sustaining a loss of €40,715 in 2006.
However, according to recent accounts filed with the Companies Office by Shannondoc Ltd, the company last year sustained this loss despite increasing its income from €5.7 million to €6 million, an increase of 4.7 per cent.
In April last, the Health Service Executive (HSE) ended it’s 24-hour AE services at Ennis and Nenagh General Hospitals, despite protests from many GP’s in the areas of Clare and North Tipperary, which resulted in these units being closed between 8pm and 8am each day. This resulted in calls to the Shannondoc’s Nenagh service since last April being increased by some 33 per cent.
At Nenagh General Hospital work is expected to begins shortly on the construction of a two-room endoscopy suite. This project will facilitate development of endoscopy services on site which will enhance the delivery of gastroenterological diagnostics at the hospital and for the region. Clinical leadership for such a unit is already in place at Nenagh Hospital as a Consultant Gastroenterologist is on site.
The Shannondoc service has been helped only slightly by the HSE, latter who providing one additional doctor in Nenagh between the hours 8pm and 2am, since the closure of this 24-hour accident and emergency service.
Last year, to provide the Shannondoc service, costs increased to €6.1 million, of which the HSE contributed €4.6 millions.
The big concern next year is that this funding will be severely cut and the impact that this will have on this very necessary service.
Concerns have been also expressed regarding road surface conditions on the Thurles to Newport road, by those forced to drive, on a regular basis, to attend the Mid-Western Regional Hospital in Dooradoyle, latter which has been ranked as one of the three worst-performing hospitals in the country in a recent HSE league table of 45 hospitals.
Shannondoc employs 134 staff comprised of 43 drivers, 51 medical staff and 40 administrative staff.
Employment costs have risen by 8 per cent from €3.8 million to €4.2 million last year.
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