Frank Duffy, Dundalk (left) one of the first patients to undergo cataract surgery as part of the new Eye Service in Louth County Hospital with Geraldine Forrester, Clinical Nurse Manager and Mr James Morgan, Consultant Ophthalmologist at Louth County Hospital.
A new eye treatment service opened recently in the Louth County Hospital, with the HSE claiming it has helped to cut waiting lists.
Funding for this new service has been provided by the European Union’s INTERREG IVA programme secured by Co-operation and Working Together (CAWT), the cross border health and social care partnership.
The new treatment service was established to support existing Ophthalmology Services for patients in the Louth, Monaghan and Cavan areas and in particular, to provide specialist eye operations and procedures locally.
The new service, which has been under development over the past 12 months, is providing cataracts and eyelid surgery and treatment for other eye conditions on a day case basis in the Louth County Hospital. The eye service is also providing the most modern treatments for patients with ‘wet’ age-related macular degeneration (AMD), diabetic eye disease and retinal problems.
The new service, by working in conjunction with the Community Eye Services and the Mater Hospital in Dublin, is making a significant impact on local waiting lists.
The Eye Service commenced with the appointment of Mr James Morgan, Consultant Ophthalmologist at Louth County Hospital in June 2013 and the team now also includes a specialist nurse, a health-care assistant and a clerical officer.
The Hospital Eye Service, together with the Community Eye Service, has seen 1,730 patients in Louth and another 1,767 patients at the Mater Hospital Dublin, on an outpatient basis. The new service is supported by Clinical Optometrist, Fiona Flynn Smyth who carries out referral refinement clinics in Community Care for diabetic retinopathy, macular disease and cataracts, and refers patients onto Mr Morgan and team for further tests and procedures.
A backlog of patients waiting to be seen has been reduced to a matter of weeks due to this new service.
Local man, Frank Duffy from Dundalk had been waiting two years for cataract treatment in both eyes before the new service. Frank had both cataracts removed and says he hasn’t looked back since the surgery.
He said: “I was among the first people to be treated when the new Eye Service started in Louth County Hospital. It is like a miracle. Before the surgery, if I passed someone in the street who said hello to me I would only know them by their voice as my eyesight was so bad with the cataracts.
“I recovered well from the surgery and I now can take my dog for a walk and see the mountains and wee houses around me. This surgery has made a big difference to my life and I am grateful for the excellent service I received in my local hospital.”
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