Northern Ireland

Daisy Hill Hospital to permanently lose emergency surgery under new proposal

Daisy Hill Hospital in Newry. Picture by Pacemaker
Daisy Hill Hospital in Newry. Picture by Pacemaker Daisy Hill Hospital in Newry. Picture by Pacemaker

DAISY Hill Hospital in Newry is to permanently lose its emergency general surgery service under a new plan by the Southern Health Trust.

The trust said it is "proposing that all emergency general surgery services for the area are delivered from the Craigavon Area Hospital site on a permanent basis".

It added that the trust's board had approved the plan, which will now go out for public consultation.

It comes almost a year after the service was removed "as a contingency measure, in response to difficulties in recruiting and retaining consultant general surgeons".

Maria O'Kane,the trust's chief executive, said delivering all emergency general surgery from Craigavon was the only way it could "meet best practice standards, with the staff and resources we have available".

She added: "I can reassure those who may be concerned, that there will be absolutely no change to the busy emergency department at Daisy Hill which is crucial to meeting the needs of our local population".

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Daisy Hill Hospital in Newry. Picture by Pacemaker
Daisy Hill Hospital in Newry. Picture by Pacemaker Daisy Hill Hospital in Newry. Picture by Pacemaker