Fianna FÃ¡il Deputy Niamh Smyth met with The Master of the Rotunda Hospital, Fergal Malone

Campaign for OB/GYN consultants moves forward

Published: Wed 27 Sep 2017, 4:09 PM

Last updated: Wed 27 Sep 2017, 5:12 PM

A recruitment campaign is being launched to recruit four OB/GYN consultants to address the anomaly scan issue at Cavan General Hospital by end of 2017. Plans to introduce the 20 week anomaly scan for expectant mothers in Cavan and Monaghan at the Cavan Hospital are on track for availability by the end of this year.

The campaign aims to full the shortfall in sonographers within the RCSI Hospital group . The recruitment campaign aims to supplement existing staff. This will allow the group to provide the 20 week anomaly scan to expectant mothers at Cavan General Hospital.

Fianna Fáil Deputy Niamh Smyth siad that she has been informed by the HSE that this scan will be provided for a minimum 12 hours per week in Cavan: “I have been informed this week that plans are on schedule and that it is anticipated that this scan will be in place by the end of 2017 in Cavan.”

Deputy Smyth said that she was informed that the RCSI Hospital Group conducted interviews for consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist posts: “Under the contract, the consultants will have dedicated hours at Cavan General Hospital, to ensure that 20 week anomaly scans can be offered to pregnant women attending the hospital’s maternity unit.”

Anomaly scans are standard practice at the country’s dedicated maternity hospitals in Dublin and Cork, however smaller maternity units, such as the one at Cavan General Hospital, do not offer the imaging service.

“This has been a source of much anxiety for parents across Cavan and Monaghan, who have had to travel to Dublin if they wanted to have the scan carried out. This is a major step forward for maternity services at Cavan hospital and will come as a huge relief to women who use the department,” The Fianna Fáil TD said.

The Master of the Rotunda Hospital, Fergal Malone, confirmed to Deputy Smyth that a recruitment campaign was being launched to employ four OB/GYN consultants within the RCSI group, all of whom would be contracted for a number of hours every week at Cavan General Hospital.