The HSE are to be written to in relation to Livinghealth in Mitchelstown, following a motion tabled at Tuesday’s Fermoy Municipal District meeting, where it was claimed people who sought urgent medical treatment at the facility were being caused ‘undue stress’ due to the waiting times being experienced.
Cllr Deirdre O’Brien, who put forward the motion to Cork County Council, said that she has been contacted by people ‘very upset’ at the difficulty experienced by patients in getting an appointment to see a GP.
“Patients call the clinic for an appointment and are asked if it is ‘routine or emergency’, is it not the GP who decides if it's routine or emergency? If you say it is not an emergency, it could take them up to 6 weeks to get an appointment. No wonder people are going on to Google to self-diagnose …” Cllr O’Brien claimed.
