Sign up now for ease of access to The Medical Independent, Ireland’s most frequently published medical newspaper, delivering award-winning news and investigative reporting.
Established in 2010, along with its sister publication The Medical Independent, our stated aim is to investigate and analyse the major issues affecting healthcare and the medical profession in Ireland. The Medical Independent has won a number of awards for its investigative journalism, and its stories are frequently picked up by national digital, broadcast and print media. The Medical Independent is published by GreenCross Publishing.
Address: Top Floor, 111 Rathmines Road Lr, Dublin 6
Tel: 353 (01) 441 0024
GreenCross Publishing is owned by Graham Cooke.
You are reading 1 of 2 free-access articles allowed for 30 days
The South/South West Hospital Group (SSWHG) spent almost €95,000 on patient taxis from January to the end of August 2019, new figures obtained by the Medical Independent (MI) through Freedom of Information (FoI) law show.
In 2018, a total of €89,443 was spent on taxis in the SSWHG. This is lower than the cost for 2017, which totalled €120,902. In 2016, the Group spent €44,410 transporting patients.
According to the Group, the taxis are used to transport renal dialysis patients to Dublin for treatment.
The Group stated: “The use of taxis for patient transport represents a more cost-effective solution when compared to investment in a fleet of HSE-owned vehicles for this purpose.”
The HSE has been criticised in recent weeks for its spend on taxi and transport costs, when figures were released showing that nationally, taxi services cost €22 million from January to August 2019.
Other figures, also obtained by MI through FoI law, have revealed the amount spent on taxis by Children’s Health Ireland (CHI), the statutory body created to take over responsibility for services currently provided by Dublin’s three children’s hospitals, and to eventually oversee the new children’s hospital.
Up to August 2019, CHI spent €221,175 on taxis and transport, the majority of which was spent transporting staff, while the remainder was used for “specimens and patients”. This compares to €238,000 spent in 2018 — €163,483 of which was for staff.
According to CHI, the organisation uses the taxis for: Patient transfers for radiotherapy treatment and for special PET scans; transferring patients between CHI sites for clinical reasons (when an ambulance is not required); transferring vulnerable patients who need to get home safely after admission; and transporting specimens at fixed pricing to different centres.
“CHI constantly monitors the taxi contract and has agreed value for money fixed pricing to regular destinations with the supplier,” according to CHI.
The “centralisation” of servers for the maternal and newborn clinical management system...
The ‘understanding and managing adult ADHD programme’ (UMAAP) began the first round..
The ICGP is examining alternative pathways for entry into general practice training as part of efforts...
In December, the HSE released part of an external review into the case of 'Brandon', a...
The evidence on doctor burnout “should scare us and concern us”, the Director of the RCSI...
A review of public health governance structures and addressing “longstanding” IT infrastructure...
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.