Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The crisis in our health service shows no sign of abating; rather, it is getting worse by the day. Patients and others in attendance experienced shocking conditions in the emergency department of University Hospital Limerick yesterday. It was compared to a cattle mart by the relatives of those present and without question, people were treated in shocking conditions over a 24-hour period. This issue has been getting progressively worse on an ongoing basis.

Today's edition of the Irish Examinerreports that the country's three main children's hospitals have begun postponing elective procedures due to mounting pressures on the system ahead of the peak winter months. Children's Health Ireland has stated that all elective and routine inpatient procedures are to be restricted at its hospitals in the coming months, due to the number of children and infants presenting for admission. That will affect Crumlin, Temple Street, and Tallaght hospitals in particular. Deputy Donnelly received information from the Minister for Health last week, which showed that more than 117,000 children are awaiting healthcare in the form of hospital appointments and various outpatient or inpatient procedures.

The waiting lists for children are quite shocking. More than 30,000 of those children and young people have been waiting for more than a year. A significant number of them are in serious pain, with many becoming sicker as they wait. Many will need further and more serious interventions by the time they are finally seen. Deputy Donnelly has not been provided with the number of children awaiting speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, psychology, audiology and many more services. He sought the figures last week but the Government was not in a position to provide them. He is expecting them in the next week or two.

In a report published in May, the Ombudsman for Children stated: "There has been an increase this year in Health complaints relating to long or non-moving waiting lists, and complaints made on behalf of children with mental health issues or those with disabilities." On mental health, more than 7,500 children and teenagers are waiting more than a year for a psychology appointment.

The picture is very bleak for children when it comes to accessing our health services. Essentially, the Government is failing the children of Ireland in respect of access to healthcare and therapy interventions. Why was the Government not better prepared to avoid the current situation whereby procedures and surgeries for children are being postponed because of the pressure on hospitals? Will the Taoiseach commit to the Government providing a comprehensive and transparent statement on the overall situation facing these hospitals, the number of procedures being cancelled and the delays that will ensue? What emergency measures does the Government intend to take to deal with this crisis and specifically to avoid delays in surgery and vital interventions for children?

See this speech in context