State-of-the-art eye care centre to open in Ballincollig in 2022

IT is envisaged that a Regional Eye Care Service based in the new Primary Community Care Centre in Ballincollig will be completed by the third quarter of 2022.

Cork Kerry Community Healthcare, South/Southwest Hospital Group and South Infirmary Victoria Hospital are working collaboratively to develop a Regional Eye Care Service in Ballincollig.

A spokesperson for the HSE told The Echo: “This new service will provide a designated specialised infrastructure where all community procedures related to ophthalmology will be performed.

“This proposal is in alignment with the strategic direction and recommendations of the Primary Care Eye Services Review Group report and the Model of Eye Care under the National Clinical Programme (NCP) for Ophthalmology.”

The spokesperson said that by implementing a more community-based model, it will improve access to care and reduce the paediatric waiting list crisis.

“The NCP for Ophthalmology recommends the integration of hospital and community care, with clinicians and care providers working in teams, as the best approach to deliver care for patients and to address the structural deficits in the current system.

“The efficient operation of the multidisciplinary team (MDT) is critical to the delivery of primary eye care. Implementing a more community-based model will improve access to care and will help address the current adult and paediatric waiting list crisis. A clear governance structure for the MDTs, with clinical audits, will ensure that the standards of clinical care are maintained,” the spokesperson added.

Cork TD Michael Creed welcomed the news: “It is going to double the current capacity for outpatient appointments. Ophthalmic services in Cork have been swamped for a long time, and it’s getting worse. To decongest the hospital services, they are going to open a state-of-the-art new Eye-Care Services Centre in Ballincollig.

“It will employ a staff of 36 and it will double the existing outpatient capacity for the Cork/Kerry region,” he added.

Separately the HSE said it expects that the primary care centre building in Ballincollig will be handed over to Cork Kerry Community Healthcare in the first half of 2022.