A purpose-built facility which will provide dedicated elective surgical, outpatient and minor procedure capacity in a modern clinical environment, was officially opened on the campus of Cork University Hospital (CUH) on Monday.
The HSE South West Surgical Hub, costing almost €90 million, will support the delivery of timely care for patients while helping to reduce waiting times. The Surgical Hub includes four operating theatres, outpatient consultation rooms, minor procedure rooms, patient assessment and recovery areas, and dedicated staff facilities.
The hub will support a range of specialties and will deliver same day procedures, allowing patients to attend for treatment, recover and return home on the same day wherever clinically appropriate.
It was officially opened on Monday by An Taoiseach Micheál Martin, TD, along with Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, TD.
A ‘NEW MODEL OF CARE’
“The new Surgical Hub is much more than a new healthcare building. It represents a new model of care,” Anne O’Connor, HSE, CEO, said.
“By creating dedicated, protected capacity for planned procedures, we can reduce the impact that emergency pressures have on scheduled surgery and provide greater certainty for patients and their families. It will help us reduce waiting times, improve access to care, and ensure more people receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time.”
The surgical hub is one of eight surgical hubs being developed nationally as part of the Government’s Elective Ambulatory Care Programme, aligned with Sláintecare reforms to improve access, efficiency and patient outcomes across the health system.
