Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. The Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, has asked the HSE to prepare a comprehensive emergency department plan to address the issues in individual hospitals. He visited the emergency department in University Hospital Galway earlier this year. With the increase in the number of Covid patients over recent weeks, the consequent ongoing requirement to provide separate Covid and non-Covid pathways is putting pressure on the capacity to deliver. As I mentioned earlier in a response to a previous question, we are committed to resourcing those plans to take any measures we can to alleviate pressures on emergency departments, including University Hospital Galway. I will advise the Minister for Health that the Deputy raised the matter here today. We will keep him informed of progress in that regard. It is a very serious issue but we will provide the resources to our emergency departments throughout the country to help move that process forward.

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