Bobby Aylward (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I commend my colleague, Deputy Billy Kelleher, on bringing forward this motion to ensure the crisis of overcrowding in emergency departments is at the forefront of Dáil business. The only consistency that has resulted from this Government’s chaotic handling of the health system is the incremental pressure placed on front-line emergency staff. Emergency medical consultants, nursing staff and all other support staff are forced to go above and beyond the call of duty every day just to ensure hospitals can function on the most basic of levels. Their job is a difficult one, and as the crisis deepens over the winter months, it will be next to impossible as even more pressure is placed on emergency services.

The latest figures made available by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation show that the number of people on trolleys at St Luke’s General Hospital in Kilkenny has soared by 144% in the space of a single year. These figures are inexcusable and are the clearest sign yet that the Minister, Deputy Varadkar, is completely out of his depth. Kilkenny has recorded one of the largest increases in the entire country when it comes to the number of people stuck on trolleys. There were 143 people stuck on trolleys in Kilkenny in October 2014, but the latest figures show there were 349 patients on trolleys in October 2015. How does the Minister stand over a situation where a growing number of patients are languishing for hours on end on trolleys in corridors and other public spaces?

I spoke to a man only a matter of hours ago who had attended the emergency assessment unit of St. Luke’s in Kilkenny before being sent home with no diagnosis following an eight-hour wait. The staff had to resort to asking him to come back tomorrow. The man informed me that there was little or no room for staff even to turn, let alone operate at the level required to administer appropriate care and attention to those who were waiting. Patients were reduced to tears and staff members were visibly upset at working in such intense conditions. I am not talking about a year ago; this was yesterday. While in power, Fianna Fáil channelled significant investment, which oversaw the opening of a state-of-the-art 26-bed unit at Kilcreene hospital for the purpose of respite and step-down care. These beds would be prime real estate now, given the current crisis facing us. I urge the Minister to investigate the possibility of reopening this facility. Kilcreene hospital is a facility which can assist in mitigating this emergency in the south east. It is an essential component of the health service in the region and with minor investment this hospital can meet HIQA requirements and relieve the pressure on surrounding emergency departments.

During a previous Fianna Fáil motion on hospital waiting lists in September of this year, I asked the Minister to give a strong commitment that orthopaedic services and elective services would be maintained at this first-class facility indefinitely as a support to Waterford Regional Hospital. This request was not directly addressed in the Minister’s response so I am raising the matter for a second time.

Another neighbouring hospital of mine, Waterford Regional Hospital - or, as it is now known, University Hospital Waterford - is the closest hospital for many in south Kilkenny. This is another crucial emergency department which caters for many rural areas of south Kilkenny and is bursting at the seams. I have outlined to the Minister the waiting list crisis at the hospital on previous occasions during the Topical Issue debate, but my call for action continues to fall on deaf ears. It is getting to a point at which the sick are nervous and anxious when they learn that they may have to attend an emergency department. They are pleading with their GPs and trying to avoid emergency departments at all costs. This is not how a modern health service should operate.

I again ask the Minister of State about the St. Luke's accident and emergency department. I cannot stress strongly enough that it was chaotic down there yesterday. I was asked to go on local radio this morning to speak about it. A patient who was on a trolley there yesterday spoke of the serious situation. This cannot continue. It is November, five weeks before Christmas. We are going into the bad season - what we call the serious season - of January, February and March, when there will be much more sickness around. What will happen at St. Luke's in those months? I ask the Minister of State to take note of this and bring our comments back to the Minister.

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