Vital service to end next month due to lack of HSE funding
The imminent closure of the Mater Hospital’s Long Covid Clinic represents a new low in the Government’s pandemic response, according to the Social Democrats’ co-leader and Health spokesperson, Róisín Shortall.
“This morning, the Mater’s Long Covid Clinic was instructed to wind down its services by the end of December. Hospital management has been forced to take this decision as the Government has starved its facility of funding.
“In July, the clinic submitted a business case to receive Government support, but the Minister for Health has failed to engage with clinicians.
“At a time when so many patients are languishing on waiting lists for treatment for the debilitating impacts of Long Covid, it is difficult to understand why the Minister has run down the clock on this vital service.
“Over the past two years, this clinic has seen almost 1,500 patients and published a landmark study of Long Covid, which uncovered high levels of neurological complications and mental health difficulties.
“Why has the Minister sat back and allowed the longest running Long Covid clinic to close, especially one which has expertise in the neurological impacts of the condition?
“Alongside a Long Covid plan that only funds one neurologist for the whole country, this latest development raises serious questions about the Government’s response.”
November 9, 2022