David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

There is some evidence to suggest that. We hear a lot about the offload turnaround time in hospitals, which have unfortunately increased, as Mr. Keeley noted in his opening statement, through no fault of paramedics. We hear about ambulances parked outside hospitals from which patients cannot be disembarked because no bed or capacity is available. Is that a growing problem? During the months Mr. Morton mentioned, that would have put pressure on all services, including the NAS. Is that issue of people waiting longer for access to a bed, waiting hours if not days on trolleys, or the lack of bed capacity have an impact on the ability of the NAS to do its job? If ambulances are waiting longer outside hospitals, what impact does it have on the NAS's ability to deliver a service or how big a problem is it? Perhaps Mr. Keeley could answer that question as he referenced it in his opening statement.