The Emyvale man who led the campaign against the reduction of services at Monaghan Hospital is adopting a "wait and see" approach to the announcement that an ambulance service has been re-instated. Peadar McMahon ran the "Community Alliance" group set up to stop the removal of many services in Monaghan. While he welcomes the news that local people who need an ambulance may now be taken to Monaghan Hospital for treatment instead of being transported to Cavan or Drogheda, he also remains cautious.
Mr McMahon said he "won't get excited" about the new service because only patients who fall into a strict set of criteria will be taken to Monaghan. He also said that those who need immediate help, like road traffic or heart attack victims, will "still have to lie in the back of an ambulance to Drogheda or Cavan." The community campaigner added that the reinstatement of any of the services lost is a positive and he praised staff and all the recent improvements at Monaghan Hospital.
"I have to compliment the people in Monaghan Hospital at the moment because, over the recent times there have ben extremely great developments," Mr McMahon said, "There have been new services brought in and other services have been enlarged so that, in itself, is great and it is working. A lot of money has been spent on the redevelopment and upgrading of the inside and outside of the building."
