The Government’s policy to support the provision of private hospital services instead of adequately equipping public services has been confirmed by the announcement by Professor Tom Keane that cancer services at Sligo General Hospital are to be discontinued.

This was stated by Marian Harkin MEP when she called for an all-out final campaign to obtain fair treatment for the people of Sligo, Leitrim and South Donegal.

Marian Harkin said:- “Professor Keane’s announcement means that the Health Service Executive will maintain it’s unacceptable policy towards the North West, a policy that is politically encouraged and approved. People up to now accepted that it was possible to make a case for Sligo and the North West but any such illusion is removed by today’s announcement.

“The HSE policy flies in the face of best practice in Europe for breast cancer where, for instance, a centre of excellence for every 250,000 population is recommended.  This compares with the figure of 350,000 contained in the cancer strategy document launched by Minister for Health Mary Harney and which implies a total of 16 centres of excellence instead of the 8 proposed by the H.S.E.  Does this mean that the strategy has been abandoned or is it, as many suspect, leaving the way open to approve further privately financed centres?

“The failure of the Government to properly staff and equip cancer services in Portlaoise is now cynically being used to advance a political policy to deny the people of the North West of services which will secure best possible diagnosis and treatment for cancers.  This is a shameful and disgraceful tactic now being used by Government spokespersons.

“An evidence of difficulty for patients travelling to Galway, many of whom have to use private transport, is the impossibility of obtaining parking at Galway’s treatment centre and this forces people to park outside the city and take a taxi to the hospital.

“People are not being given the whole picture of what this proposed centre of excellence policy means.  One thing is certain is that it will place extra pressure on those needing cancer services and especially those dependent on public services.

“There is only one course open to the people of the North West and that is to launch a sustained campaign of political pressure as the HSE is impervious to criticism since it has been given the buffer role between the Government and those whose job it is to challenge unfair polices on behalf of the people”, Marian Harkin MEP concluded.