Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have acknowledged that given the increasing population, the increased numbers of elderly people and the increased demands on our acute hospitals, the HSE will have to manage the pressures on the system in the most efficient and best possible way. The point I am making is that the highest health budget ever will be allocated next year and so improvements will be made. There are particular pressures such as those the Deputy has mentioned, including in emergency departments.

The Deputy should know that the HSE special delivery unit team was on a site visit in Galway yesterday, working with University Hospital Galway, with a view to supporting the efforts to reduce the pressures on its crowded emergency department. As part of the winter initiative, the emergency department in Galway has been identified by the HSE as needing additional support. It is working in the areas still experiencing pressures such as Galway and Cork. Already, we have seen improvements where that kind of work has been undertaken, for example, in Beaumont Hospital where we have seen the numbers being reduced. We have to continue that sort of intensive work with emergency departments, and there are various management initiatives that can be undertaken to improve the situation. That is being done, despite the current pressures. Every effort is being made to deal with the particular issues. Under the winter initiative, extra money is being allocated for the Mercy hospital in Cork, with the provision of 18 step-down beds, which should improve patient flow in that hospital.

All of this work is being undertaken. Of course, the Deputy is correct in that the challenges faced by the health service are enormous. However, we can deal with them in a better way this year because of the increased funding.

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