Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is difficult to credit the statement of improvements in individual hospitals. In reality, there are 446 people on trolleys and even ten years ago, this would have been unacceptable at a time of year when pressure on hospitals should be low. We have reached record numbers of trolleys in winter and extremely high levels in summer and this is putting our system under incredible pressure.

I will certainly pay tribute to those who work extremely hard in the health system and are under severe pressure, in particular, home helps who have to rush across cities and counties to try to do half an hour's work in ten or 15 minutes, which is utterly unacceptable.

The position on the ground is that in April last, 350 people who had been allocated home help in South Lee had not received it specifically due to financial constraints on the Health Service Executive.

It was not down to any delay in processing. This was not helped by the fact that the home help co-ordinator is doing three days per week in the area. Many people have left the system because they have not been able to get the hours. While a consultation may be happening on a statutory scheme or whatever it may be, there is no excuse for this underinvestment in home care. It is a reflection on the Government's wrong priorities and the more expensive cost of home care provided through for-profit agencies compared with direct hires through the HSE.

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