THE INJURY unit at St John’s Hospital in Limerick City treated 17,583 patients last year, outperforming the units in Ennis and Nenagh hospitals and saving that many patients a potentially long and stressful wait in the emergency department at University Hospital Limerick.
While the Limerick city injury unit topped the class in numbers of patients treated, the Ennis and Nenagh units did play their part in reducing emergency department waits by treating 11,517 and 10,215 patients respectively over the course of 2023.
Speaking on the latest episode of the UL Hospitals Podcast, Dr Cormac Mehigan, consultant in emergency medicine and clinical lead at the injury unit in Ennis Hospital, described the work of the units at Ennis, Nenagh, and St John’s as “rapid, efficient, high-level facilities with good outcomes for patients, 12 hours a day, 365 days of the year”.
Over the past five years, the three injury units have been a crucial pathway for the hospital treatment of minor injuries in the Mid West, and a total of 46,704 patients attended the units during 2023.
Staffed by consultant-led expert teams of registered advanced nurse practitioners, registrars, and administrative support, the injury units provide timely treatment for minor injuries that are non-threatening to life or limb but still require prompt attention.
Patients don’t need an appointment and the service is free to people referred there by a GP and to medical card holders.
“Primarily we see adults and children over the age of five who have minor injuries to the legs below the knee and to the upper limbs from the clavicle or collarbone down to the fingertips. We can also deal with some wounds,” Dr Mehigan said.
“Patients can also get an X-ray at their injury unit without having to wait a long time.”
“The things we don’t see are major medical emergencies such as strokes, heart attacks, severe abdominal pain, bad chest pain, seizures, diabetic comas – the really bad medical emergencies.”
He acknowledged that “for most people, the desire is to have the treatment they need as close to home as possible, but unfortunately, that can’t always be delivered, and if you need more sophisticated care, then that needs to happen in Limerick (UHL) “.
“We encourage people to call ahead and ask if they have any doubt, and in those borderline cases what we always say is: come and see us and, if we need to redirect you, we can redirect you.”
A full list of injury unit locations and times are available on the HSE website.
