James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We know about one death because it occurred on the road to Cork but how many people have made it to Cork only to die subsequently because it took them too long to get there and how many people have suffered additional heart damage as a result of a delayed arrival in Cork? The south-east region needs 24-7 cardiac care. It has the population 500,000 people but it also has large populations in geographically isolated areas. I mentioned Fethard-on-Sea in County Wexford. Other areas include Ramsgrange, Kilmore Quay and Our Lady's Island. They are highly populated areas with high numbers of tourists yet they are up to three hours away from Cork. It is simply not acceptable to say to those people in the south of Wexford, Waterford, Carlow and Kilkenny that they must travel to Cork to get services to which everybody else in the country has access. A region with 500,000 people should have 24-7 cardiac services in its top hospital.

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