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Lorraine Tinney • Published 17 Jul 2010 14:00
FIVE local patients were sent on a 27-mile journey to another hospital by private car and taxi because there were no beds at the IRH.
A total of nine people had to make the trip to the Vale of Leven in Alexandra due to a rise in emergency admissions in Greenock earlier this month.
In one case, a taxi was used to transport a patient because it would have taken up to five hours for an ambulance to arrive.
Union representatives claim staff shortages were the cause of the moves. But health board bosses have insisted they were routine transfers caused by emergencies.
Unison divisional convener Raymond O'Donoghue slammed the move and said: "The real issue is the health board is sitting on vacancies and beds are closed. If they filled these vacancies, they would be able to open these beds."
But health board chiefs have denied the transfer was due to staff shortages.
A spokeswoman for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, said: "It is totally untrue to suggest patients were transferred from the IRH to the Vale of Leven Hospital because of staffing levels at the IRH.
"From time to time, emergency admissions to our hospitals can rise sharply.
"Occasionally this means there are no beds available for new emergency patients.
"When this happens, it is routine practice across the UK to transfer patients who require emergency admission to other hospitals.
"Last week, the number of emergency admissions to the IRH increased in this way and nine patients were transferred to the Vale of Leven Hospital.
"Four were transferred by ambulance, four were driven by family members and one person was transferred by taxi.
"The patient was transferred by taxi because the Scottish Ambulance Service advised it may take between four and five hours for a non-urgent ambulance to become available.
"We did not want the patient to have to wait this long and ensured full medical risk assessment was carried out before the patient was transferred."
This article appeared in Greenock Telegraph 17 Jul 10
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