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Surgeons from across Northern Ireland are to carry out operations at the South West Acute Hospital in Enniskillen to reduce a backlog of surgery as a result of coronavirus.

The Belfast Trust, which operates the Nightingale facility at Belfast City Hospital, is the first to relocate surgery to Enniskillen.

Priority gynaecology and renal cases are being scheduled first.

Urgent general surgery cases are being planned for December.

The potential for urgent paediatric orthopaedic cases is also being explored.

Health Minister Robin Swann said while the initiative was initially focussed on "high priority" patients, officials were also looking at making the most of the available capacity at the South West Acute Hospital (SWAH) in the long term.

'Urgently needed'

The Health and Social Care Board said work was ongoing to identify further high-priority elective work from across Northern Ireland that could be delivered at SWAH.

Mark Taylor, from the Royal College of Surgeons, said the additional capacity was "urgently needed" to reduce the backlog of surgical patients on waiting lists.

"It is important that Northern Ireland 'COVID-light' sites are delivered on a regional basis so that surgical capacity can be rebuilt and can keep going during this time," he said.

"We also need a longer-term strategy to look at how elective and emergency surgery are carried out in Northern Ireland's hospitals and how these sites are staffed."

Chief executive of the Western Trust, Dr Anne Kilgallen, welcomed the move.

"This initial phase of regional collaborative working in respect of elective in-patient surgery at South West Acute Hospital has very much highlighted the excellent facilities and opportunities which are available there," she said.

"This development work will continue and other specialties will be explored."

The Western Trust, which has struggled in the past to recruit staff to work in the south-west, also confirmed it had made offers to fill three permanent consultant surgeon vacancies.

Jill Weir, from Unison, said it was an opportunity for the hospital to showcase its "fantastic" facilities, and medical and nursing staff, in order to attract people to work here in the future.

"We would welcome anything that is NHS work locally as well, but our concerns would be we've already overstretched staff here and as long as this isn't taking away from local services and not stressing out our nursing staff we would welcome it," she said.

Fermanagh GP Dr John Porteous said it was an example of how services will have to be delivered in the future.

"Our national health service has shown itself to be extremely flexible and adaptable in the face of this pandemic so this is just another example of how we are going to need to think creatively about how to maximise the use of the resources available," he said.

"This is a fine building with excellent accommodation and facilities so I think it's only right that the health minister and the department are looking at maximising the potential of this building and these facilities."