James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The question must be asked about how many doctors the HSE estimates it will take to fulfil needs in GP care. Are there estimates of how many additional GPs need to be hired? Even looking at the basics such as out-of-hours GP services, the likes of SouthDoc and other emergency out-of-hours services are at breaking point in respect of the services they are able to offer. I could give my own example. I tried to contact an out-of-hours service recently and failed to do so. It is impossible to get communication with some of them because of the pressure they are under. I would like an insight into the estimate of how many doctors it will take to fill existing vacancies and fulfil the demand.