Health Services

New figures from the CSO have highlighted significant challenges facing people in County Clare when it comes to accessing healthcare. Clare residents live an average of 17.1 kilometres from a primary care centre – the longest distance of any county in Ireland. Meanwhile, calls are growing for a permanent BreastCheck facility in Ennis, following the temporary relocation of the mobile screening unit from the county town. So, should Clare have more primary care centres, and is it time for a permanent breast screening service locally? Alan Morrissey has been speaking about this with Sinn Féin Councillor James Ryan, who is also a member of the HSE Regional Health Forum Midwest. For more on this, Deirdre Culligan, spokesperson for Friends of Ennis Hospital, was on the line. Photo (c) Curran Aluminium