The Politics of Men.................12 months on

This was originally posted almost 12 months ago, with the Lisbon referendum high on the agenda. With another round of elections approaching us now in 2009, this one a mis-match of European, local and bye-elections, the post seems as relevant if not more so. Although a lot has changed since then and unfortunately theres a lot more that hasnt. One fact cannot be denied, Sligos Cancer services still exist and grow and outperform every single cancer clinic in the country.
When written last year, this was in response to the growing intensity of the campaign, the unrelenting apathy and indifference of Fianna Fail and Mary Harney and the steely determination coming from the most unlikely of surces.

Minister for Private Health. Mary 'the Hutt' Harney

Harneys Sick Experiment

What iceberg?

I stopped trying to figure out where to start when describing Mary Harney. Its not easy to accurately describe her, its virtually impossible to understand her and try as you might you cant remain objective. There is no neutral ground when it comes to your health, you're either with her policies or against them.
I make no apology for being against them, Ive seen nothing worthy of support. I find it strange that a woman who recieved less then 5000 1st preference votes, belonging to a now defuct party has control over the health services of almost 5 million people. Stranger still is that shes still there, but then when you consider who sits along side her on the front benches, maybe its not that strange after all.
In line with the 'revolutionary' thinking of her party, free market policies were incorporated into our health services, economies of scale, centralisation, privatisation would solve our woes. We pumped in more money then ever, hired more managers and consultants and lets not forget co-location to free up all those badly needed beds, the future should be rosy, free and equitable health for all, all we had to do was wait........
And wait we did, 3 years on and co-location has yet to yield a single extra bed, waiting times have increased, the HSE now resembling its creator has become bloated only with consultancy firms and managers and even now with a budget of 16 billion a year, we still cant afford €14 million to immunise 12 years olds and save up to 90 lives a year. €14 million for 90 lives, thats about €150,000 per life, thats less than you pay in overtime to private consultants Mary, you know like the ones who work for MKC.

I wonder how much MRPA KINMAN (now MKC) made in consultancy fees, working for the HSE? Weren't they the same firm that set up HIQA? Aren't they the same firm chaired by Brian Geoghegan? Isn't he married to the minister for health?
I wonder how much money Brian Geoghegan makes from the carparks in our PUBLIC hospitals, better still I wonder how he got contracts for carparks in public hospitals?
I wonder how much of that €14m needed to save 90 lives a year goes to Mary Harneys husband, goes to Mary harney?
Im not sure when Adam Smith spoke of the 'invisble hand', this is quite what he meant, I think the PD's (2 of whom also happen to be directors of MKC) got their free market economics confused with cronyism and cowenomics. Even the free market is not this callous, surely 12 years olds are more important than profit margins Mary? then again, maybe not.
So where do you draw the line Mary? When does the health of these people supercede the interests of the shareholder?
The elderly,
The disabled,
Cancer patients,
Children,
Medical card holders,
Prescription drugs,
Whos left? The mentally ill- no, Its a long time since you gave up on them- no profit there but cancer patients, thats where the real money is.
In the Northwest theres not enough patients to justify radiotherapy in a public facility but there are enough 'customers' to justify it, in subsidised unregulated private hospitals. But its not about profits is it Mary? its about beds or rather the lack of them, you'ld never subsidise private hospitals so they could cherry pick the profitably procedures?
Would you?

Like I said at the start its hard to describe someone like Harney, egotistical, apathetic, dishonest, hypocritical and greedy go some of the way but not far enough.
This ship is definitely going down Mary and once again the lifeboats are full, and its the people in steering class that are getting screwed but what do you care?
You're gone one way or the other, the only question is whether you walk through the door or get pushed and when.

Poster from the 'PatientsTogether' March

Minister for Private health?

UCHG A&E at 11am 20/08/2008

August 20th 2008:





You hear the stories, you read the newspapers and official reports, the debates are never ending and you think you've seen or heard it all but you haven't. Not until you see it for yourself, does it becomes clear the ruinous state our health services are in.
On a wet August wednesday morning at 11am, in Galways primary health facility at least 12 people lay on trolleys in and around A&E. In the same county hospital that the Minister for Health hails from, staff did their best to tend to ill patients in a room with 1/2 inch plywood, a mere 4ft high seperating them from other poor unfortunates waiting for medical assistance.
Notions of dignity, privacy, hygiene were lost among the hustle and bustle of over-worked staff, cramped conditions, and crumbling infrastructure. The Minister for Health said recently that she couldnt look the women of the northwest in the eye, I wonder how she feels about the men and women of Galway. UCHG is bursting at the seems and yet shes still determined to see out her disastorous term as Minister for Health.
Ego, self-importance and reckless arrogance have destroyed our heath services, in Harney we have someone who epitomises everything thats wrong with politics, our health services and the 'new' Ireland. She may not be able to look the women of the northwest in the eye but then again she doesnt visit the northwest, I wonder how she even holds her head up in public anymore, how she can face the people of Galway, how can she face herself and the mire that is our health system.

Knocknarea

August 17th 2008




150 people climb legendary
Knocknarea mountain in Sligo. As tradition dictates each participant brings a stone to the ancient cairn of Queen Maeve, the warrior queen of Connaught.
The youngest had just turned 3, the oldest was in her 80's accompanied by her life long friend, herself only a year younger. Cancer patients struggled up the wet rocks, families carried stones in rememberance of their loved ones lost and even some local politicans made the trek to the top.
After a week of storms, floods across the country and a months rain in a single dark August day, even the weather was kind that morning as people from all across the northwest stood together at the top of Queen Maeves tomb.
As one walker said, 'with Queen Maeve and God on our side who the hell can be on theirs'

No money, no co-location

Beacon Medical Group’s co-located hospital at the Mid-West Regional in Limerick is the first in the country to get a final grant of planning permission, after two appeals to An Bord Pleanála – one involving Socialist Party leader Joe Higgins – were both deemed invalid.
However, after months of high-stakes talks, the whole future of Health Minister Harney’s co-location strategy now hangs on events due to unfold over the coming week.
“There are three hospitals that we want to get signed up now,” a HSE spokesperson said. The HSE says it is ‘very, very confident’ that project agreements (PA) for co-located hospitals at St James’s in Dublin and at the Waterford Regional Hospital will be signed very shortly.
The HSE has asked for updates and clarifications from all the consortia but has insisted that the documentation must be finalised by the end of July. The Synchrony consortium has now agreed a date – before the end of August – when it will sign a Project Agreement for St James’s. Synchrony will also post the required €20 million bond with the HSE.
A PA for Sligo, where Mount Carmel Medical Group (MCMG) is the preferred bidder, will certainly take a month longer than at MCMG’s other co-location in Waterford and at St James’s. Beacon would be offered the contract to build these two hospitals, should deals not be signed. Sligo is described as a ‘disaster of a site’, built on top of a hill. The technicalities of joining the proposed and the older parts of the hospital are difficult. The Waterford Co-location Consortium is to build the hospital in that city and MCMG will be the operator there.

Read the full article here in the Irish Medical Times

For everything else there's Mary Harney

....I'm going home

When is a political issue not a political issue?

When you have a minister for health that ignores medical evidence, quotes out of date and inaccurate statistics and refuses to acknowledge a differing opinion, are you faced with a medical issue or a political one? When our TD's and senators are unable or even unwilling to help, where can you turn?
They all talk about best medical practice and best patient outcomes, yet choose to ignore evidence that meets and even surpasses these standards. If this was truly a medical issue, then surely there would be no issue. The answer would be simple, the evidence enough and the decision already made. But this is not the case, this is not how things work anymore in the new Ireland, complaints don't go up, they go around. Theres no-one to take responsibility because nobody wants it, its better not to know, its easier.

So how exactly did we get to this point? Our politicans hide behind misplaced party loyalties, more concerned with the anger of their party then the health of their constituents. With a blatant disregard for the constitution, Mary Harney delegates to anyone willing to accept the responsibility (or at least until they can in turn delegate to someone else). These elected representatives scream that Sligo's cancer services is not a political issue, yet when the medical evidence is presented, its duly ignored.
Where does it end? at what point will people say enough? at what point will it be too late?
Its a dangerous experiment we're involved in, people will get hurt and careers damaged if not destroyed but if thats what it takes for people to listen, for people to care, then maybe its a very neccesary experiment.