Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am taking this Topical Issue matter on behalf of the Minister. I welcome this chance to update the House on the current position on the accident and emergency department at University Hospital Limerick. Pressure on accident and emergency departments throughout the country has been rising as the population is both growing and ageing. Accident and emergency department attendances have been significantly higher this year, and the HSE has reported an average increase in accident and emergency department attendances of nearly 6% compared with the same period last year. The accident and emergency department in University Hospital Limerick is one of the busiest in the country, with more than 60,000 attendances annually. Of those presenting, the proportion of patients requiring admission has also increased.

I completely accept that delays at accident and emergency departments are upsetting and distressing for patients and families. It has long been recognised and accepted that the current accident and emergency department at University Hospital Limerick is not fit for purpose. A new state-of-the-art accident and emergency department, which will triple the size of the current department, is being fitted out and is scheduled to open in the first quarter of 2017. Once built, the experience of accident and emergency department patients will improve immeasurably in terms of comfort, privacy and dignity. Pending completion of the new accident and emergency department, the university hospitals group is following the system-wide escalation framework agreed by the national accident and emergency department task force and issued to hospital groups in December 2015.

Actions being taken to relieve the pressure on University Hospital Limerick accident and emergency department include the transfer of suitable patients from the hospital to model 2 hospitals in the region, including Ennis, Nenagh, St John's and Croom. Also, and where appropriate, patients are being transferred to community care settings. I know that staff in the hospital are working very closely with community intervention teams to provide antibiotics and other basic care in a patient's home or care facility. This will, it is hoped, facilitate hospital avoidance as well as early discharge. With such a system, people might be able to go home rather than stay in hospital. In addition, extra ward rounds are being conducted and elective surgery is being kept under review. Extra ward rounds are being done in order that people may be discharged more quickly.

The hospital is also communicating with local GPs to ensure patients are referred to the accident and emergency department only where necessary and encouraging appropriate use of local injury units. In the mid-west, there are now three local injuries units in St. John's, Ennis and Nenagh. These units are equipped to see patients with minor injuries and play a significant role in diverting patients from the accident and emergency department. In 2015, over 30% of unscheduled care patients were seen in one of these units. An awareness programme to inform the public of the range of services provided by these units was launched in autumn 2015.

I fully acknowledge the difficulties the current surge in accident and emergency department activity is causing for patients and their families. It is also important that I acknowledge that the staff are doing their utmost to provide safe and quality care in very challenging circumstances. I assure the Deputy that addressing accident and emergency department overcrowding is and will remain a priority for this Government. In that regard I am confident that the issue in University Hospital Limerick will be significantly improved in 2017 with the opening of the new accident and emergency department. I do not have a date for the opening but I will ask the Minister to revert to the Deputy on that.

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