Michael Harty (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

This is a very important question for the mid-west, particularly in the context of the controversies that are raging in so many areas of our health service. There is disquiet and frustration in the mid-west that the regional hospital, University Hospital Limerick, is first or second in the number of people waiting on trolleys for admission on a daily basis.

There are two proposals to address this. One is to build a permanent 96 bed unit at the regional hospital in Limerick. To my knowledge, that has not got to design stage. The other is an interim proposal to build a 60 bed modular unit at Limerick to try to deal with the trolly crisis that faces the hospital each day. On 5 November the Minister for Health announced in Limerick that funding had been committed for this urgent 60 bed modular block at University Hospital Limerick. The unit is expected to cost €19.5 million. There is every expectation in the mid-west, in Clare, Limerick and north Tipperary, that this would be completed by the end of this year.

University Hospital Limerick suffers extreme overcrowding. This is the result of reconfiguration almost ten years ago where beds were closed in Ennis and Nenagh but no replacement beds were provided in the regional hospital in Limerick. Since then the population of the area has expanded. The population is not only growing but also ageing and we know that it is older people who occupy beds for prolonged periods. We need this 96 bed unit to be provided on a permanent basis, but it is also necessary for the 60 bed modular unit to be provided as urgently as possible. The 60 bed modular unit is not a permanent solution but it is an important element in dealing with overcrowding.

Recently, doubt has been cast over whether the promised money will be produced and whether it will continue to be part of the capital plan. Recently the Minister of State, Deputy Pat Breen, expressed on local radio the hope that the money would be available but he could not confirm that it would be. This has caused great frustration in the mid-west. Two issues must be dealt with. When will the capital plan for 2019 be announced? Can the Minister of State confirm that it will contain the building of the 60 bed modular unit? What is the current status of the contract? When will tendering be made and when will contracts be signed? Construction is expected to take 300 days. If we are to have that by the end of 2019, construction must start immediately. When will the first patient be admitted to that block?

Then there is the issue of the 96 bed permanent unit. When will the funding be made available through the capital plan for that permanent 96 bed unit? How much will this cost? There is great controversy over how building projects such as this are tendered, procured, designed and built. Can the Minister of State confirm a costing has been placed on this 96 bed unit? What is the current situation in relation to design and planning and when does the Government expect the work to begin?

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