Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister for Health is not present. In saying this, I mean no disrespect to the Minister of State, Deputy Jim Daly. I said this to him in March in respect of a similar topic when he came in to deputise for the Minister. I understand the Minister for Health is very busy and I have no problem with that but he has never once come here to address one of my Topical Issue matters. Normally all of the issues I raise are related to University Hospital Limerick. Can the Leas-Cheann Comhairle, Ceann Comhairle or Minister of State, Deputy Jim Daly, raise my concern with the Minister so he might try to get here himself the next time one of my Topical Issue matters is selected for discussion? By March, I had tried to get him in here 13 times.

Obviously, there have been more occasions since then. It is quite disappointing that this hospital has the worst crisis in the State and has the highest number of people on trolleys every day, yet the Minister has been unable to appear on even one occasion. I understand that he is busy but he cannot have been unable to attend on every occasion it has been selected as a Topical Issue. It is simply not good enough.

To be honest, I have lost count of the number of times I have submitted a Topical Issue on this matter. There is an issue in the hospital every day and every week. The full capacity protocol is used every day in Limerick even though it is supposed to be a temporary emergency measure. That means staff are under huge pressure and elective operations are cancelled. A number of them were cancelled this week. There have been 166 people on trolleys already this week. There were 46 on Monday, 63 on Tuesday and 57 on Wednesday. However, I am astonished that I am obliged to ask the Minister for Health today, and the Minister of State might convey this to the Minister, to explain why there were not enough staff to feed patients in the emergency department in Limerick's largest hospital last week. It is a crazy and outrageous situation.

On Monday I was contacted by somebody who works in University Hospital Limerick. That person stated there was only one attendant providing food for over 90 patients in the emergency department for the previous four days and, as no staff cover was available, some patients could not get food or even a cup of tea. The agreed figure for such staffing at the hospital is a minimum of three. This is inexcusable. Today there are 57 people on trolleys in the hospital. That is more than the number of patients on trolleys in 17 other hospitals across the State combined. Can the Minister explain this situation? I hope he or his Department will contact the hospital management immediately to ask what is happening. What additional funding will be provided to ensure there are enough staff to feed the patients at least?

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