Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

There is a certain amount of live horse and eat grass in the Minister's response. This investment in the future is not addressing the immediate problems of patients waiting on trolleys in our emergency departments. The winter initiative was to address the problems of overcrowding in emergency departments through the winter months. In November, there are 528 people on trolleys. There will be huge difficulties in January, February and March of next year. The winter initiative has already failed to address those key difficulties in our emergency departments. I am not making this up. These are the figures and statistics, backed up by senior clinicians across the country who are saying people will die if there is consistent overcrowding in the emergency departments. Between now and January, will the Minister ask the Minister for Health to revisit the winter initiative and to address the delayed discharges in our hospitals? Over 600 people are still in delayed discharges from acute hospitals across the country. That may assist in addressing the problems in the emergency departments.

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