A Community Assessment Hub is now open in Waterford.
The facility at University Hospital Waterford is for patients with Covid-19 who need face-to-face clinical assessment.
It's to ensure patients who do not require immediate hospital care are seen as quickly as possible
Patients can only access the hub following referral by the GP.
It's staffed by GP's in association with healthcare professionals - including nurses and physiotherapists and administration staff.
In a statement they say the HSE/South East Community Healthcare’s aim in providing the Hubs, is so that anyone who requires a face-to-face clinical assessment can be reviewed within the primary care setting, as quickly as possible. This will assist patients who need assessment but who do not require immediate hospital care to avoid referrals to acute hospitals where possible.
Following review and clinical assessment at the Community Assessment Hubs, patients may either be asked to return home, referred to hospital or be referred to a self isolation facility when it is not feasible for an individual to self isolate within their own home.
The Community Assessment Hubs will be staffed by GPs, in association with healthcare professionals – including nurses and physiotherapists and administration staff.
Anna-Marie Lanigan (Head of Service/Primary Care, South East Community Healthcare) has paid tribute to the GPs and HSE teams involved in the establishment and operation of these Community Assessment Hubs and for their dedication to patient care:
“Approximately 100 staff have been redeployed and trained across counties Carlow, Kilkenny, South Tipperary, Waterford and Wexford to work in these Community Assessment Hubs. We have worked closely with GPs across the South East in relation to the operation and referral process. Staff have come from a number of locations within the health services and is indicative of how HSE personnel from a number of service areas are working in an integrated manner and with GP colleagues with the aim of providing enhanced supports to patients during this challenging time.”
“It is our intention that the Community Assessment Hubs will be operational from 8am to 8pm, albeit that this is very dependent on the activity within the individual Hubs and the referral patterns. Patients will only be reviewed when a prior appointment has been made for them. Appointments at the Community Assessment Hubs can only be made following consultation with an individual’s own GP or by Caredoc outside of normal surgery hours. Every effort is being made to ensure the provision of comprehensive and effective health services within the Primary Care setting”.
