Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his reply and am glad to hear the hospital and HSE are in discussions about increased bed capacity. The primary issue is the care of patients, and while money is an issue, it should not be an issue in the care of patients. I spoke to staff in the emergency department last Tuesday, and this is about an interim solution. The Minister said a winter planning group is being established. I hoped this group would have met before this winter and have an interim plan in place. Some of the staff’s suggestions on the day I visited the hospital included using the spare capacity in St. John's Hospital to establish a temporary geriatric accident and emergency unit or the provision of a prefabricated building adjoining the accident and emergency department in Limerick.

The Minister visited a hospital in Dublin some time ago and I suggest he visit UHL at some stage. The number of medical assessment beds in Ennis and Nenagh hospitals should be increased by two in each hospital. It is important the Minister listens to the staff, who are enduring the problems and who are stressed. They were very stressed that morning because they could not move in the hospital. I hope the winter planning group is meeting as we speak and that an interim solution will be put in place because we have heard the alarm bells over the summer. The trolley numbers over the summer indicate that we will have a major influx of patients over the winter period.

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