Tyrone County Hospital

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Tyrone County Hospital (Irish: Otharlann Contae Thír Eoghain) is the main hospital in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. The hospital has occupied the same site in the town since 1899.

[edit] Proposed closure

As of 2006, the hospital is facing closure. The Maternity, Paediatric and Intensive Care units have all been closed and children are not allowed to be taken into Accident & Emergency. Because of this, patients face travelling distances of approximately 50km (31 miles) south to the Erne Hospital in Enniskillen (which has a smaller population than Omagh), 50km (31 miles) north to Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry, or as far as Craigavon, which is over 80km (49 miles) away.

As part of the campaign against the proposals to close the hospital, local GP Kieran Deeny was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly on the single issue of retaining the hospital in the 2003 elections. On 15 October 2005, there was a mass protest outside the hospital, which made television news, both local and national newspapers and radio. On 28 November 2005 there was a large protest in the town centre, with over 30,000 in attendance. All of the town's schools and many shops closed for the event, allowing students and staff to attend.

Another controversial issue is the fact that towns with a similar or smaller population than Omagh are allowed to keep their acute hospital services -