Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

12 September. Pardon me - it was not clear and I was not sure. I was wondering at the gap between the last time and the next scheduled meeting later this month. I am sure the Taoiseach is aware that over the first ten months of this year, record levels of people have been left on trolleys in hospitals throughout the State. I am sure many colleagues here have particular instances reflected to them, as a very distressing case was reflected to me in the recent past. As we progress into the winter, these figures are set to continue to rise. Over the period I refer to, up to this particular point over 2017, some 82,000 patients admitted have experienced time on a trolley. Throughout the month of October, the figure reached 9,000. Any extrapolation of those figures could indicate that between this month and next, we could very well reach almost 100,000 people or more. This is a 15% increase in the October figures compared to the figure for the same month in the previous year. This is a very difficult issue not only for staff in our hospitals, but for families coping with loved ones in hospital care.

The Taoiseach is familiar with the problem, having formerly been a Minister for Health himself. At this late point, what steps are being seriously taken to address this matter? It was an issue the Taoiseach flagged up himself in the course of his own tenure in office. When he took over as leader of Fine Gael, I recall him indicating that he would take a special interest in health. What is being done to address this serious issue? When will we see a detailed, costed overall plan with a timeframe? A plan is needed to tackle this unacceptable situation across our public hospital network.

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