Ms Susan Clyne:

Yes, and we have outlined some of them in our submission. We need an assessment of what is available now. For example, Citywest Hotel was set up with a number of beds to be used for Covid. It is now not being used for Covid but we have rented it so we can use it for something. We have to use temporary modular builds. We have to help hospitals located outside of the big regions, like Wexford, and put in extra beds there. We accept that the building of a hospital takes a long time but it will take longer if we do not get it started. Temporary modular builds have to start taking place. We have to be innovative and work with GP colleagues to see how we can streamline services between general practice and the secondary care system. We have to recruit doctors. We have significant number of non-consultant hospital doctors, NCHDs, in the system who are due to finish their specialist registrar, SpR, training posts in July. They should be offered an acting-up consultant post immediately. It is possible to do that. We also have NCHDs who are due to finish various contracts in July who have not been guaranteed any posts to stay in the Irish system. While we are saying we need all these doctors and more, we are allowing another generation of doctors to leave the country.