Over 170 senior doctors from Letterkenny University Hospital (LUH) and local GPs are demanding an urgent meeting with the Minister for Health over the exclusion of LUH from the Surgical Hub plan.
It was recently confirmed the new facility for the north west would be built at Sligo University Hospital (SUH).
The doctors want to meet with Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill to address what they describe as a critical threat to patient care and health equality in the north west.
They are also calling for an independent review of the HSE’s rationale for selecting SUH over LUH
Despite being the sole hospital serving the entire county of Donegal, LUH has been excluded from consideration as the location for the new surgical hub planned by the HSE. Instead, Sligo University Hospital (SUH) has been put forward as the sole preferred option – a decision the clinicians call ‘flawed, unjustified, and deeply damaging’ in a letter circulated to local media.
“The decision to overlook LUH ignores both population need and geographic logic,” said Dr Padraig McGuinness, a GP in Donegal.
“Donegal has a larger population than the combined areas of Sligo, Leitrim, South Donegal, and Cavan. Many of our patients would face round trips of five hours or more to access elective surgical care in Sligo. That’s unacceptable and dangerous.”
Letterkenny consultants point to long-standing underfunding and neglect of the hospital:
- LUH receives half the per-patient funding compared to SUH.
- LUH has the longest waiting times among all Model 3 hospitals.
In the 2025 HSE Capital Programme, LUH was allocated just 0.3% of the national capital budget – a figure they call “scandalous” given the hospital’s patient load.
“Patients in Donegal already face some of the worst cancer survival rates in the country due to late presentation and access issues,” said Dr. Louise Moran, Consultant in Intensive Care and Anaesthetics at LUH.
“To bypass Letterkenny again is not only medically indefensible – it’s a direct hit on patient safety and regional equality.”
The HSE has floated a proposal for an ambulatory care centre in LUH, but doctors argue this is an inadequate substitute, lacking ring-fenced funding, staffing plans, or timelines.
“We need real surgical infrastructure — not vague promises,” said Mr Michael Sugrue, Consultant General Surgeon at LUH.
“Without adequate surgical resources, we simply cannot attract or retain the consultants we need. This decision risks the future of general surgery in Donegal and the long-term viability of LUH as a Model 3 hospital.”
They say it is ‘unprecedented’ that over 170 clinicians have come together in this action and shows the gravity of the concerns of those doctors. Consultants and GPs across Donegal are united in their demand for:
- A face-to-face meeting with Minister Carroll MacNeill within the next month.
- A moratorium on final decisions regarding the hub’s location until a fair, evidence-based comparison is completed.
- An independent review of the HSE’s rationale for selecting SUH over LUH.
“This isn’t just about a building or a budget line,” added Dr McGuinness.
“It’s about whether Donegal patients are treated as equals in our health system. Right now, they’re not.”
The delegation remains available to meet the Minister in Donegal or Dublin and reiterates its call for a solution that meets the government’s own standard: equitable access to elective care for all.
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