High level of staff absences reported at local hospital

A new report has revealed a high level of staff absenteeism at the Midland Regional Hospital in Tullamore. In November and December last the hospital lost 7% of its staff hours to absenteeism, which is double the HSE's target of not losing more than 3.5%. Data on absenteeism during this period was recorded at 27 hospitals and the level seen in Tullamore was the fifth highest in the country. The figures were contained in the latest report issued by HealthStat, the HSE's hospital performance information system. HealthStat concluded that the overall performance of the hospital in Tullamore was 'average' during the months of November and December. Improvements were seen in some areas. Last August, it was revealed that more children were on a waiting list for treatment at Tullamore hospital than anywhere else in the country aside from Dublin. At that time, 125 children were waiting between six months and two years for inpatient and daycare treatments, while a further 225 children were waiting between three and six months for procedures. By December, the number of children waiting for six months to two years had been reduced to 73, while 172 children were waiting for between three and six months for treatment. Despite this progress, the figures still greatly exceed the HSE's target which is to have all children treated within three months. During the first six months of 2009 the hospital exceeded its budget by €2.1 million, but by the end of the year that overspend had been reduced to €446,000. Other details contained in the report included that, in December, 100% of Emergency Department patients in Tullamore were transferred to acute admission within the HSE's target timeframe of 0-6 hours. A total of 1,023 adults were awaiting elective surgical or other procedures at the hospital in December. Of these, 761 were waiting less than six months, 218 were waiting for between 6 and 12 months and 44 were waiting for over a year.