€5 million hospital Medical Assessment Unit to open next Monday

Mallow General Hospital will enter a new era next Monday with the opening of a €5 million Medical Assessment Unit on the ground floor of the newly-constructed extension at the hospital. The new unit will be manned by four newly-appointed physicians and will operate on weekdays, and also at weekends for those referred by local GPs. Monday’s ground floor opening will be followed in about seven weeks by the opening of a day procedures ward and state-of-the-art endoscopy suite on the first floor. When the new building is fully up and running, the old Accident and Emergency Department will be redesigned to house the new Local Injuries Unit.

Next week’s opening was welcomed by Mayor of Co. Cork Noel O’Connor who said the new Medical Assessment Unit would ensure the highest standard of service for those with medical problems. “It is expected that people will travel from far and wide to avail of this specialist service,” he said, adding that the Mallow unit will open on Saturday and Sunday for referrals, which is an improvement on the service offered at Cork University Hospital which has no medical assessment service at the weekend.

The Mayor praised the Local Injuries Unit in the hospital, claiming that patients are on average seen, treated and sent on their way within an hour. “People are pleasantly surprised with the efficiency of this service and the short time it takes to be seen,” he said.