James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)

Will the Minister acknowledge that we have a capacity problem and that demand is outstripping supply? We can reduce demand by putting in place things such as prevention, national body tests, diagnostics in the community and one-stop-shops in the community where people can be seen and treated by their general practitioner without having to go to hospital. We can increase capacity by getting better use of beds that are currently inappropriately occupied and by building more beds in the short term. That will have to be done. There is no point having long-term plans for 2020 with 4,000 fewer beds in the system. Whether it is cystic fibrosis, psychiatry, mental health, care of the elderly, accident and emergency figures, neurology, urology or neurosurgery, the dreadful situation is an indictment of our health service. Beverley Seville-Doyle went into hospital at 11 a.m. and was found dead in a toilet the next day.

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