Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The consultants that are currently in Galway are not full-time rheumatology consultants. Two of them are in general medicine as well. That means we have one and a half consultants.

Second, the vacancy that has arisen and that has driven the total closure of the clinic at Merlin Park - it is not just that appointments have been cancelled; outpatient appointments at Merlin Park have been entirely shut down - is a maternity vacancy, which was notified and which should have been planned for. That child will be born and we wish him or her well, but a degree of planning would have put a locum consultant in place. Some 850 people have had their appointments cancelled. These 850 people will join the other 1,500 people-----

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