THE SouthDoc out-of-hours family doctor service in Skibbereen is no longer operating, despite HSE ‘being in a state of denial’ about the service, according to one local councillor.
Last week the HSE told The Southern Star that there were ‘no plans to close any treatment centres in the region’. But The Southern Star has received several reports from patients trying to access the Skibbereen service, to be told that service is now operating in Bantry.
The HSE’s Cork Kerry Community Healthcare (CKCH) said last week ‘that SouthDoc is committed to the long-term continuation of the provision of the out-of-hours service in the West Cork region’.
But it didn’t address a specific query about a possible ‘pilot scheme’ to move the Skibbereen service to Bantry.
‘Skibbereen treatment centre remains operational in this regard. All patients are dealt with in accordance with their clinical needs,’ said the spokesperson.
A holidaymaker told The Southern Star this week the when he contacted SouthDoc last Saturday morning with a relatively minor health concern, he was told to go to Bantry.
‘A doctor rang me back and told me that the Skibbereen SouthDoc service is closed and if I wanted to be seen, I would need to drive to Bantry. I didn’t go in the end as it was too far,’ he said.
‘What surprised me more is that no one in Skibbereen seemed to know about it. It’s a disgrace really that people in Baltimore or further afield have to travel to Bantry for the service.’
The Southdoc website still cites Skibbereen as a location for the service which, it says, operates at weekends, evenings, and on bank holidays.
Fianna Fáil Cllr Joe Carroll, who first raised the issue over two weeks ago at a Council meeting, said the service is definitely not available in Skibbereen any more.
‘We are absolutely taken aback and feel let down that SouthDoc is no longer available in Skibbereen – and more to the fact that the HSE are in a state of denial about it,’ said Cllr Carroll.
‘They don’t seem to accept it’s gone. Yet we have records of many people trying to use the service over the past four weeks and it’s just not available in Skibbereen.
‘If they want to think that it’s still there, it’s not.’ He also raised fears for the busy Bantry service if Skibbereen area patients are added to its workload.
‘This should certainly not be allowed happen when there is a shortage of doctors in the area,’ he said.
He also highlighted the fact that Skibbereen Medical Centre is now closed on Saturdays.
Cork South West Independent TD Michael Collins said he was seeking clarification from the HSE on the ‘alleged’ discontinuation of the SouthDoc service in Skibbereen.
‘Reports suggest that patients are now being directed to Bantry, leading to uncertainty and anxiety among the community members who rely on these vital healthcare services. There are also growing concerns that the red eye service in Skibbereen may also no longer be operational,’ he said.
Social Democrats leader and Cork South West TD Holly Cairns said it is essential that ‘urgent clarity’ on the status of SouthDoc in Skibbereen be provided.
‘The HSE has insisted that the Skibbereen clinic is operating as normal, but this does not line up with the experience of local residents in recent weeks, who have had to travel to Bantry in order to seek medical assistance out-of-hours,’ said Deputy Cairns.
She also called on the government to urgently act to increase capacity within the GP systems, as many are ‘under huge pressure and at risk of burnout’.
Christopher O’Sullivan, local FF TD, said the situation with SouthDoc in Skibbereen was ‘clear as mud’.
‘I will do everything I can to get to the bottom of this. For me it is absolutely vital that Skibbereen has a SouthDoc service.’
As recently as this Wednesday, a HSE spokesperson once again said: ‘Skibbereen treatment centre remains operational in this regard. There are no plans to close any treatment centres.’
