Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his detailed response. I welcome his statement on maximising resources and improving outcomes and the fact that it is not about financial considerations. We are all on the same page when it comes to patient safety and quality. It is about finding the best way to achieve that for the residents of Counties Laois and Kildare. I also welcome his acknowledgement of the pressure that management, staff and patients in Naas hospital are experiencing. In acknowledging that, we then have to figure out how best we can alleviate it both in the short and long term.

Kildare has a population of 210,000 people but it has a disproportionate number of nursing homes, particularly in the north of the county, because there are fewer of them in Dublin. That means some of the patients who present at Naas are older and sicker compared to those presenting at other hospitals, which brings its own pressures. The emergency department in Naas has eight cubicles and two resource rooms. This is not enough for the size of the population in Kildare. We are lucky to have an amazing staff in Naas hospital who work under intense pressure. We need to relieve the pressure and ensure it is not intensified by any future actions. Construction of the endoscopic unit needs to be commenced this year. As part of that build, there is the potential to build several extra wards. Will this be considered by the HSE and the Department as a means of addressing the pressure that Naas hospital is under? I also welcome the Minister's statement that no decision would be made without due consideration for Naas.

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