Eamon Scanlon (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

A total of 206,606 bed days were lost in hospitals in 2018 as a direct consequence of delayed discharges. A patient is categorised as a delayed discharge when he or she no longer requires care in an acute hospital setting and there is no access to an appropriate step-down facility. At a time when so many vulnerable people need to be admitted to hospital, such a rate of lost bed days exposes the inadequacy of our health system. Delayed discharges have a significant impact on the number of people left lying on trolleys in emergency departments if beds are occupied by patients who should be cared for at home or in other facilities. It is impossible for emergency department staff already working desperately hard to have the ability to respond to surges in demand in general hospitals. A total of 14,000 people aged over 75 were forced to endure a lengthy wait of more than 24 hours in hospital emergency departments last year. There is no doubt that delayed discharges contribute to waiting times and we need to step up the availability of step-down bands.

A total of 205 people in Sligo and Leitrim are waiting for home help. Of these, 137 have been waiting three months, 25 have been waiting three to six months and 43 have been waiting for six to 12 months. I know for a fact that some of these people are terminally ill. Quite honestly, they deserve to get something. They have worked all their lives and paid their taxes. They and their families need a bit of help at this stage but they are not getting it. The Minister of State made the point that an extra €406 million has been invested this year. I accept that but, unfortunately, much of this money seems to have been taken up with payment in respect of carers' mileage and break times, which they deserve. A lot of the extra money has been soaked up.

As already stated, 205 people in Sligo and Leitrim are waiting for home help hours. In Kerry and the north Cork and north Lee areas, nobody is waiting for home help hours. In south-east area of Dublin and Dún Laoghaire nobody is waiting for home help hours. In Longford and Westmeath, nine people are waiting and in Louth nobody is waiting. I do not know whether these areas get more money or are better managed. It is definitely different in the rest of the country. This is very important for people who, as already stated, are sick and need care and help. They want to get home to be with their families and that is where they should be. As Deputy Brassil indicated, not supporting home helps and carers does not make economic sense They are the unsung heroes who are working so hard to keep people at home and to look after them well.

See this speech in context