Frustration rises in Galway after vague responses from Health Minister on Portiuncula Maternity Services
Galway councillors say they continue to receive vague responses from the Health Minister’s office after repeated requests for the reinstatement of maternity services at Portiuncula University Hospital (PUH), and for a designated meeting with the minister, have gone largely ignored.
At the most recent Ballinasloe Municipal District meeting, Councillor Evelyn Parsons presented the latest correspondence received by the Regional Health Forum West, on which she serves, from the Minister for Health.
In a motion at the end of September, Independent Councillor Evelyn Parsons called for the Regional Health Forum West to urge the Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill to “immediately reverse the downgrading of maternity services.”
The motion also requested that Minister MacNeill attend the next forum meeting to “account for this decision.”
This October, Cllr Parsons highlighted the extent of PUH’s reach, serving patients from eight surrounding counties. She said that while assurances have been given that “steps are being taken to support the unit” and to prioritise the safety of mothers and babies, she remains unconvinced by the response to date.
For months, Cllr Parsons has been calling for an independent, external review of Portiuncula as a whole. “This has to go beyond local, beyond regional, and it has to go national to have an external eye on this,” she said.
According to the recent response issued by the health ministers office, a “highly experienced” external management team was put in place in January 2025 to oversee and review maternity services at PUH. The team is led by external obstetrician Dr Mark Skehan, though it ultimately reports to HSE West and North West regional management.
The response also reads: “It is essential that every appropriate step is taken to prioritise patient safety and neonatal care – not only at Portiuncula, but across all maternity hospitals in Ireland. Consideration for the future direction of maternity service development will require an extensive evidence base, of which a review of the implementation of the current National Maternity Strategy will form part.”
However, the statement did not address the motion’s request to reverse the downgrade of services, nor did it confirm the minister’s attendance at the next meeting or mention any further plans to do so.
Cllr Parsons told her Ballinasloe colleagues that the minister has yet to respond to her direct correspondence on the matter as well.
While the issue has been raised in the Dáil, Councillor Dermot Connolly expressed concern about the minister’s absence: “The minister herself did not appear while the topic was raised by two of my party colleagues. She was absent for Portiuncula questions and queries, which is worrying,” he said.
A key question remains over whose advice informed the recommendations from the reviews on PUH, especially to divert high-risk patients to other hospitals. Cllr Parsons said clarity is needed on this point and called for “scientific, objective facts.”
At a recent Galway County Council plenary meeting, Councillor Jimmy McClearn urged colleagues “not to get political” over the issue. He noted that while HSE CEO Bernard Gloster stated the recommendations from the 2018 Walker Report had not been fully implemented, the HSE had previously claimed they were.
“There is an issue about hospital management,” Cllr McClearn said. “Until the hospital management team cooperates fully with the external suggestions, nothing will get done.”
Cllr Parsons, however, believes Portiuncula has been unfairly targeted. She said that an external audit of all hospitals, including PUH, should be prioritised, as it may reveal broader systemic issues.
“It is a political issue,” she said in response to Cllr McClearn. “Where does the responsibility lie? It lies with the minister because she has the power to fix the issue. As Cllr McClearn said, a third party should be brought into PUH, something I have long since wanted. In no way is PUH an outlier in this issue; it has been specifically targeted.”