Staff Shortages in Cancer Services in the West a Scandal

The news from the HSE West this week that almost 900 patients who are being treated for cancer have had their appointments cancelled at University Hospital Galway since the start of this year because of staff shortages is nothing short of an outrage. We know that cancer is something that affects very many families and the worry and stress of being treated is hard enough on people without their appointments being cancelled because there is no staff to treat them. We were told that “centres of excellence” would improve the treatment of people with serious conditions like cancer but there certainly is no excellence in this situation. I am calling in the Saolta Group today to proceed immediately to appoint the staff required to provide patients with a proper service. This intolerable situation is a scandal and cannot be allowed to continue.