Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour) | Oireachtas source

At the end of 2012 there had been over 20,000 fewer people on trolleys than at the end of 2011. That was an improvement of 24%. Up to 5 April 2013, 2,600 fewer people had been on trolleys compared with the same period in 2012. There are strains on the health service, particularly at this time of year. We have come through a period of particularly unseasonable weather. Winter time and winter weather put additional pressure on emergency departments and on the hospital system.

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