Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I fully agree that the operation in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda is fantastic. I think it has five separate pathways when patients come in, including the use of advanced nurse practitioners who are doing a phenomenal job in being able to see, treat and discharge about 70% to 75% of the patients coming into that hospital. The challenge the Deputy posed is exactly the challenge I posed the HSE. What are we doing about it? We now have a group that is looking at every emergency department throughout the country and doing an analysis of what they have and do not have, versus what they must have. It is using an approach, called the five fundamentals, which is drawn from experience in Scotland and across the UK. Essentially it comes down to looking at pre-admission and reducing the numbers coming in, ensuring hospitals have the facilities and management they need, and ensuring patients can be discharged. We are carrying out an analysis for every emergency department. I am determined that the identified gaps will be addressed.

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