Debate contribution: South West Acute Hospital: Future of Services
Debate contribution by Miss Jemma Dolan on .
- MLA
- Miss Jemma Dolan
- Party at the time
- Sinn Féin
- Date
- 9 September 2025
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Adjournment
- Heading
- South West Acute Hospital: Future of Services
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5086859
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I welcome the opportunity to speak on the future of services at South West Acute Hospital. I, too, thank my colleague Deborah Erskine for securing today's Adjournment debate. I wish her and her husband, Robert, all the best with their imminent new arrival. I also extend my thanks to the Minister and the members of SOAS for joining us for this important discussion this evening. For the people of Fermanagh and South Tyrone, the SWAH is not just a hospital; it is a lifeline. The SWAH provides essential services to families and patients who would otherwise face long and difficult journeys to receive the care that others in the region take for granted. That is why the future of services at the SWAH must be safeguarded, strengthened and invested in. I will touch on a number of the vital services that are provided in our hospital. First, emergency general surgery is not an optional service; it is a vital, life-saving provision. A viable, resilient health network demands that EGS returns to the SWAH. As others have said, since December 2022, emergency general surgery at the SWAH has been suspended. The suspension was initially described as temporary, yet the Western Trust advanced a public consultation that risks making it permanent. That was not a consultation in any meaningful sense and was fundamentally flawed — so much so that the Health Minister stepped in to advise the trust to pause it. Since then, there has been radio silence from the Western Trust. There has been a failure to engage properly with the people of Fermanagh and Tyrone, which ignores the urgent needs of those who rely on the SWAH in emergencies, and no credible plan for service restoration. Support for that view is growing, with groups like the GAA, businesses and hoteliers declaring the process as deeply flawed and lacking legitimacy. We will continue to hold the trust and the Department of Health accountable for the process. Now, rather than talking about what the Western Trust is trying to take away, let us celebrate and try to build on what we already have. As most of you know, I gave birth to a baby girl in March last year, and I was so proud to have her in the SWAH. I can say, with my hand on my heart, that I received the best care and attention during my entire journey, and I will be eternally grateful to every single staff member who I encountered. Bringing a child into the world should be one of the most joyous occasions in the life of a family, but it is also one of the most vulnerable. For that reason, I sought assurances from the trust on several occasions that there are no threats to maternity services at the SWAH. On each of those occasions, the trust has confirmed that it remains entirely committed to having a full maternity provision at the hospital. Equally, stroke care is an area in which minutes can mean the difference between life and death or recovery and lifelong disability. Thankfully, the stroke unit at the SWAH is renowned as top class. Although the 2019 consultation on reshaping stroke care threatened it, the staff at the stroke unit are still punching above their weight. The unit received A and B results from a sentinel stroke national audit programme — SSNAP — audit, and, in 2023, it was deemed the best stroke unit in the North. We all know the pressures facing the health service, and one of those serious pressure points is A&E. The A&E department at the SWAH is a type-1, consultant-led unit that provides 24/7 urgent care in our area. It is important that everyone knows that, although emergency general surgery has been temporarily removed from the hospital, the A&E is still fully functional. Yes, it is under pressure, and you should not attend unless it is a medical emergency. Despite that, the nurses, doctors and support staff there demonstrate professionalism, dedication and compassion every day. The future of services at the SWAH is a litmus test, a strategic investment in the health, social and economic infrastructure of the west. It has the potential to contribute so much more than it currently does to our health service, North and South, across all disciplines. If we build the SWAH's surgical and medical capacity, it will solidify its position for the future. Our communities deserve safe, local and high-quality care. The SWAH must remain a hospital that not only survives but thrives, and it must be equipped to provide the services that our families and patients so urgently need and deserve.
771 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Jev’s structured answers met the documented threshold for “not flagged”.
- Overall probability that the activity is being used to promote, exploit or escalate an identity-based controversy: 0.04 (flagging needs at least 0.70; at or below 0.30 is not flagged).
- None of the five culture-war criteria was met (each was below 0.60).
- Assessed as legitimate policy scrutiny (0.93).
- No identity-based framing was identified (1.00).
- Subject area: Sport (including the GAA), the arts and cultural bodies.
- The overall probability was at or below the not-flagging threshold.
This is an AI-generated assessment of the text, made against published criteria. It is not a finding of fact about the MLA or their intentions. The Assembly record itself is the fact.
Jev’s structured answers
| Question | Probability | Met? |
|---|---|---|
| Identity framing | 0.04 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.02 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.02 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.02 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.03 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.93 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.04 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 1.00 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.00 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.00 |
| Adopts it | 0.00 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Sport (including the GAA), the arts and cultural bodies | 0.46 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.38 |
| Sexism, misogyny, ageism and other equality groups | 0.13 |
| Gender, sexuality, abortion and related social issues | 0.02 |
| Another identity-related subject | 0.01 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 13:05 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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