It’s been confirmed that 5.5% of blood tests ordered by GPs are being outsourced by Letterkenny University Hospital.
The HSE says the demand for blood test analysis at Letterkenny University Hospital is such that the service has experienced considerable capacity issues, resulting in the analysers being routinely run up until 2am at full capacity.
It follows Cllr Jack Murray’s concerns regarding the cost of outsourcing tests to external laboratories
They say there is a need to increase capacity, but it’s been determined that it is not possible to install a new analyser without an extension.
LUH Management and the Pathology Service Management have been working with HSE estates and Procurement over the last two years to try to secure a solution, but the statement stresses the Management Team does not have the authority to unilaterally commission building works on the Hospital campus as these must be delivered by HSE Estates.
The statement concludes that while the hospital seeks the necessary approvals and funding for this capital project, it has been outsourcing samples to meet the excess demand in the short term.
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Statement in full –
Currently Letterkenny University Hospital (LUH) Laboratory Department processes blood tests for both the Community (GPs and Enhanced Community Care Programmes) and inpatients and outpatients at LUH. There has been a sustained, significant increase in demand for blood science services in recent years.
Number of tests carried out in LUH Pathology Department
2019 3,970,087 tests
2022 6,998,990 tests
2024 7,166,450 tests (including outsourced bloods @ 5.5%)
This testing is completed using 2 lines of 3 analysers per line. These analysers run from 8am until 8pm with an on-call service being provided from 8pm until 8am which require the use of the same analysers. Since 2022 the service has experienced capacity issues resulting in the analysers being run up until 2am routinely at full capacity.
Due to the increased volume of requests for the Blood Science Department both from in-house and GPs there is a need to increase capacity in the blood science department in LUH. The existing floor space has been assessed and determined that it is not possible to install a new analyser without an extension to accommodate an additional analyser line and associated equipment. LUH Management and the Pathology Service Management have been working with HSE estates and Procurement over the last two years to try to secure a solution to allow these samples to be processed in house. LUH Management Team do not have the authority to unilaterally commission building works on the Hospital campus as these must be delivered by HSE Estates. In order to progress the proposed extension a Strategic Health Infrastructure Framework (SHIF) alignment form has been completed – this is a required part of the HSE Estates approval process. The completion of the SHIF Alignment Form is a multi-stakeholder process and must include input, coordination with, and sign-off from all relevant stakeholders.
While the hospital seeks the necessary approvals and funding for this capital project, an interim solution was put in place. LUH has been outsourcing samples to meet the excess demand in the short term. Since March 2024, 5.5% of the total GP workload is being outsourced, this is because the Pathology Department are unable to meet demand within existing space and they do not have the sufficient number of analysers to perform tests within routine working hours.
