A report produced by the Getting It Right First Time (GRIFT) Project Team at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital looking at Gynaecology across Northern Ireland has made 17 recommendations to the Western Trust on their Gynaecology service.

Three of the recommendations related to the South West Acute Hospital (SWAH) included developing theatre capacity (three session days/routine working at weekends) with increased staffing for day case or minor procedures, which should be focused at the SWAH and Omagh Hospital and Primary Care Complex.

The recommendations advised the Western Trust should also promote the SWAH gynaecology unit as the elective day case hub, and develop Ward 43 in Altnagelvin for ambulatory treatments further.

They also recommended that the Trust should resolve the issue of SWAH consultants leaving for the Southern Trust.

In recent months, the Trust has employed new consultants at the hospital.

The report, published by the Department of Health, also stated that there was a "massive opportunity for an elective surgical hub" for the Western Trust.

And while it said the maternity unit at the SWAH was "relatively small", with 1,100 to 1,200 births per year, there are no plans for a reconfiguration and centralisation of maternity services in the Trust area.

A spokesperson for the Western Trust also confirmed this, saying: “The Trust notes the GIRFT report published by the Department of Health on gynaecology services and the reference to South West Acute Hospital Maternity Services.

“We fully agree that gynaecology waiting lists are unacceptably high.

“The Trust would like to reassure the public that there are no threats to maternity services at the SWAH, and we remain entirely committed to full maternity service provision at the hospital.

“As part of that commitment to first-class maternity care to mums and babies, we have further strengthened both our medical and midwifery permanent workforce in recent months.”

Among the 17 recommendations in the report is the Trust urgently developing an improvement strategy to address the out-patient and surgical waiting lists.

Further recommendations include that the Trust should also consider a re-prioritisation exercise of patients waiting in excess of 12 months; consider annualising the theatre lists per consultant to reduce cancellations; consider developing nurse practitioner roles/overseas recruitment strategy with incentives, and to commission an abortion MVA service.