AQO 2920/22-27
Ms Claire Sugden
Independent
East Londonderry
Tabled Date: 05/01/2026
Answered On Date: 15/01/2026
Priority Written: No
Question:
To ask the Minister of Health for an update on his decision in relation to the removal of emergency general surgery from Causeway Hospital.
Answer:
On 18 December 2025, the Strategic Planning and Performance Group chaired an Emergency General Surgery Causeway Summit. This meeting brought together senior leaders from the Northern Trust, Western Trust, and NIAS at Chief Executive and Director level. The purpose of the summit was to consider the potential impact on these organisations should emergency surgery at Causeway Hospital close and to enable system-wide planning and collaboration ahead of any Ministerial decisions regarding changes to Causeway Hospital’s emergency surgical services. At the meeting it was agreed that further work was required to review patient flows, and an independent analysis will be commissioned to model the way forward. This includes consideration of the opportunities afforded within Causeway Hospital, taking account of available theatre capacity. It should be noted that it is planned that there will continue to be surgical services on the Causeway Hospital site including a consultant surgical presence. Plans also include Causeway continuing to have a Surgical Assessment Unit and the Trust aims to extend its opening hours to enable as many surgical patients to be assessed and treated in Causeway Hospital as possible. National bodies, such as GIRFT suggest that emergency surgical assessment at the front door of hospitals result in 30% fewer general surgery emergency admissions each year, as patients are managed in an ambulatory way. Causeway will also maintain its elective ward and theatre sessions and discussions are well underway with the SPPG to expand the elective surgical capacity. These discussions are around commissioning a third inpatient theatre at Causeway Hospital. This will allow the Causeway Hospital to be become a Regional Elective Overnight Stay Unit. A further update from this work will be due in early March.
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