AFTER years of penny-pinching bureaucrats are finally giving Letterkenny General Hospital an INCREASE in funding.
As part of sweeping changes to how the HSE funds the health service, the county’s only major hospital will get 7% more to spend on patients in 2013.
It is still less than half the allocation per person given to regional and city hospitals elsewhere, but management say it is a “step in the right direction.”
Sligo hospital is getting a 5.2% increase in its budget for the year
“It is heartening to see that the good work of the management and staff in LGH has been recognised by the HSE and this comes after the opening of the new A&E last year in addition to the new Psychiatric Unit completed in 2011,” said Labour Party Senator Jimmy Harte.
“I congratulate the hospital and look forward to working with them to highlight the important services that must be maintained in the hospital.
“We have a fine hospital that we should be proud of and the continued support of the government is crucial to the future development of more services.”
Under the HSE plans many hospitals have had their budgets cut, whilst others have seen moderate increases.
However the Government has still failed to give Letterkenny a ‘regional’ status which would automatically trigger extra funding, despite the fact the Co Donegal facility treats more patients that several of the regional hospitals, including Sligo.
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