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Cardiothoracic Ward opens at University Hospital Galway
Minister for Health launches ‘My Health, My Language’
The Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly T.D., has launched a video series to help migrants navigate the Irish health system more easily and provide health information in multiple languages. The series of multilingual videos on the Irish health service were developed to make health advice more accessible to people from migrant communities living in Ireland.
According to the 2016 Census, there are over 600,000 people in Ireland (13% of the overall population) who are multilingual, speaking a language other than Irish or English at home. The videos, which have been produced in 17 different languages, offer clear information on important health topics such as how the Irish health system works, accessing different types of health care, services that are free and information on pregnancy, newborn and maternal health.
Healthcare systems vary significantly from country to country, and navigating an unfamiliar health service on arrival Dr Sura Aldeen and Uzma Shakeen, pictured watching the ‘My Health, My Language’
in a new country has been shown to be a stressful experience and can result in a lack of access to essential services. These videos are presented in a personal, relatable and culturally appropriate manner, using simple language. The videos are presented by native speakers, who are also healthcare workers based in Ireland. People are often reassured when they see a member of their own community delivering factual, trustworthy health information in the videos.
Dr Margaret Fitzgerald, Public Health lead for social inclusion, HSE National Social Inclusion Office says, “Understanding and navigating the health service has been made simpler through ‘My Health My Language’, a series of multilingual videos aimed at migrants and people with limited English-language skills. We know from our work to reduce inequity in the health service that language and cultural differences can be barriers to people accessing the healthcare they need. These videos provide us with a powerful tool to speak to people living in Ireland in their native language and overcome some of these barriers. Very often, inclusivity benefits everyone. “The closed captions in the relevant language on each of the videos assist not only people watching in their native language, but also people who are deaf or have hearing impairments, as well as viewers watching with the sound off. We were delighted to have worked closely with Translate Ireland, ICGP and colleagues in the HSE in the development of these videos. Thanks to all the wonderful clinicians who took time out of their busy schedules during the Covid-19 pandemic and the recent Ukrainian crisis to participate in the videos.” These videos were produced by the HSE’s National Social Inclusion Office with support from Translate Ireland, the Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP), and the HSE’s mychild.ie, National Immunisation Office (NIO), Sexual Health and Crisis Pregnancy Programme and other healthcare workers.
A new Cardiothoracic ward has opened at University Hospital Galway. The 13 bedded stateof-the-art ward is dedicated to cardiothoracic surgery. The ward is built to the highest standard and accommodates three isolation rooms, 3 twobedded wards and a four-bedded ward depending on the needs of the patients. The area includes a pre discharge lounge/ waiting area for patients waiting for admission. There is also a treatment room / pre assessment room where patients can be pre assessed prior to surgery. Costing ¤4.71m to design, build and equip, the ward has a state-of-the-art monitoring facility with telemetry and in-room monitoring. This provides privacy to the patient when they are resting while allowing them to be monitored by staff in the ward twenty four hours a day. Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon for the Saolta University Health Care Group Mr Alan Soo welcomed the opening of the new ward. “I’m delighted to open this new ward to the patients requiring cardiothoracic care in the Saolta Hospital HealthCare Group. This state-of-the-art ward is built to the highest standard and regulations which I’m extremely proud of. It will allow us to provide patient care in a safe and clean environment at the same time giving adequate privacy to the patients to recover in their own time. Here, I would like to acknowledge all personnel involve in making this ward project a reality,” he added. The Cardiothoracic Unit in UHG is the sole tertiary referral centre for both cardiac and thoracic surgery in the West of Ireland. The thoracic service is one of four designated NCCP lung cancer surgery centres in Ireland. The department delivers both elective and emergency services to all hospitals within the Saolta Hospital Health Care Group. It is also a designated training centre for junior surgeons, nurses and allied health professionals.
Paul Reid to step down as CEO
Paul Reid, CEO of the HSE
The CEO of the HSE Paul Reid has advised the Chairman, the Board of the HSE and the Minister for Health that he will be stepping down from his position later this year.
He has agreed with the Chairman that he will step down in December 2022, facilitating a period to advance the process of selecting a successor. He said today that he has no immediate career plans.
In a message to staff today Mr Reid said that he was making the decision with a heavy heart, and that it was the hardest decision he had ever made in relation to his own career.
“Having previously worked in the private, not for profit, central and local government sectors, working in the HSE has been by far the greatest period in my career. It has been truly rewarding leading an organisation whose staff come to work every day to make people’s lives better.
“No organisation will ever match the commitment, dedication and relentless willingness to go beyond the call of duty that I have witnessed as we battled multiple waves of Covid, a criminal cyber attack while driving a significant reform agenda. This has been truly inspirational for me to experience.”
He said his decision was influenced by two key factors: A desire to spend more time with his family who had made many sacrifices to support him, and a belief that the HSE was entering a new phase and that the appointment of a new leader was now timely.
Paying tribute to Mr Reid the Chairman of the HSE Mr Ciarán Devane said, “It is with very great regret that I and the Board have heard of Paul’s decision. He has led the health service through what has been the greatest challenge it has ever faced, and done so with relentless dedication and professionalism. We are very grateful that he will stay in his role for a further period to allow us progress the extremely difficult task of replacing him.”
Improvements in Opiod Agonist Treatment
New research from RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences recommends that several measures implemented during COVID-19 to maintain access to opioid agonist treatment (OAT) led to improvements in the service and should be continued post-pandemic. The study, led by researchers in the RCSI School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, has been published in the International Journal of Drug Policy. OAT is type of a treatment in which ‘opioid agonists’ – most commonly methadone – are prescribed for people who are dependent on opioids such as heroin. OAT helps to suppress heroin use, improves mental and physical well-being, and reduces risk of death including drug overdose deaths. A 2019 study showed there were over 10,000 people receiving OAT in Ireland. Emergency contingency guidelines for opioid agonist treatment (OAT) were introduced in Ireland in March 2020, to ensure rapid and uninterrupted access to treatment while mitigating COVID-19 risk. Certain measures, such as rapid assessments and telehealth, enabled services to overcome many of the usual barriers to providing treatment. As a result, waiting lists for OAT were drastically reduced, with over 11,000 people accessing treatment in 2021.
This study, consulted a panel of experts and stakeholders including psychiatrists, GPs and pharmacists, as well as people who were accessing OAT for opioid dependency, to identify which of the OAT contingency measures implemented as a result of COVID-19 should be continued. The panel recommended 16 changes to be continued beyond COVID-19 in Ireland, rather than reverting to pre-pandemic practices. The agreed statements related to facilitating safe access to OAT with minimal waiting time, supporting patient-centred care to promote health and well-being, and preventing drug overdose. Consensus was not achieved for OAT drug dosing and frequency of urine testing. Dr Gráinne Cousins, Senior Lecturer in the RCSI School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences and the study’s principal investigator, commented on the findings, “The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic transformed how OAT was delivered, in Ireland and internationally. While many authors have suggested that recent innovations should be continued beyond the pandemic, this is the first study to seek consensus, among a wide range of stakeholders, on whether recommendations introduced in emergency clinical guidelines should be retained beyond the pandemic. “These consensus recommendations are intended to inform future policy decisions and discussions regarding the delivery of OAT, identifying which changes should be considered for integration into care models beyond COVID-19. For example, all people on OAT should be prescribed and encouraged to take a supply of Naloxone (a medicine that rapidly reverses an opioid or heroin overdose), particularly during high-risk periods. They should also be trained on how to use Naloxone.”
This research was funded by the Health Research Board, Research Collaborative in Quality and Patient Safety [RCQPS-2020-016].
