David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister back. He has been here a few times over recent days. I welcome the opportunity to have this debate. The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed a decades-long failure to build a public health system with enough doctors, nurses and beds. It has resulted in an unprecedented interruption to normal healthcare services, affecting community and acute settings. Our health service is now under pressure on several fronts. It is dealing with overworked staff, Covid care, non-Covid care, catching up on delayed care, a vast reduction in capacity and the looming winter flu. Dealing with these crises will require substantial public investment in protecting capacity. We are facing a perfect storm such as we have never faced before and it is very worrying.

At the start of August, I launched Sinn Féin's plan for protecting capacity in the health service. This is a €1.9 billion package which would ensure the redeployment of the maximum number of beds through repurposing existing space and modular units as well as providing for a much-needed expansion in the numbers of doctors, nurses and allied health professionals. Many front-line workers are in a pool under Be On Call For Ireland and have still not been offered any work or a contract. All of this is desperately needed because our healthcare workers are at breaking point. They are burned out. Many are still dealing with the after-effects of having had Covid-19. They have not had a break, coming straight off the disaster of last winter and into a pandemic. They are now facing what may possibly be the worst winter for acute hospitals in the history of the State. A job guarantee is needed for all of those who joined the health service to tackle the pandemic. An expansion in staffing levels is also needed.

So far, there has been no plan from Government for protecting capacity and staff, although the Minister has said he will publish a winter plan. The health system must work for patients and families. We cannot continue to put them and healthcare workers in harm's way through inadequate facilities and understaffing. The health service does not just need a plan for winter, but a plan for change. The status quocannot be maintained and there cannot be more of the same. A new vision and a fresh start for healthcare are needed.

This Government has already broken many promises in respect of what was passed in last year's budget. We in this House collectively passed a Bill a number of weeks ago to expand medical card access for those over 70 and for children under 8 but there has still been no announcement from Government as to when any of that will happen.

I will raise an issue with the Minister and give him a minute of my time to respond. It is an issue which has been brought to my attention regarding those women who are pregnant and who have to go to hospitals for appointments. It is a very serious issue. Women understand that they have to play their part and that, when they go to hospital, they and everybody else have to be protected. In the early days of the pandemic, it made some sense to limit the number of people going into hospitals. A woman who is pregnant can now go to a bar, restaurant or other public place with her partner but is not able to bring that partner in for a very important hospital appointment relating to her pregnancy. That should be looked at.

I am writing to the heads of all of the maternity hospitals to ask that this be reviewed but the Minister has an opportunity to lead on this issue. I ask him to look at this issue, within the public health guidelines and to see what can be done to ensure that a pregnant woman may bring her partner to appointments. We have heard some distressing stories about women who have had complications in their pregnancies who could not have their partners with them when they got bad news. That is something which could be looked at. That is the type of easing of restrictions that builds public confidence because people can see it makes sense.

I also had the pleasure of meeting residents and workers at the St. Mary's and Caritas centres in Merrion earlier today. I am sure the Minister is aware of this issue. Some of the people I met, including trade union representatives, said that he has not responded to their emails or calls. He should engage with them. While this organisation is run by the Sisters of Charity, it is important that the workers are protected. They need their jobs maintained. There are issues with regard to redundancies. A number of centres are now under threat and as a result we could lose geriatric care beds, care beds and nursing home beds. There is a need for the HSE to step in.

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