Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

As I have raised with the Taoiseach on many occasions, University Hospital Limerick, UHL, has almost the highest number of patients on trolleys every day. The high number per day in the emergency department, ED, means that it is in a perpetual state of crisis requiring continued cancellation of elective procedures. The number of people treated on trolleys so far this year is 14,370 people, which already exceeds the significant total in 2021, and did so by the end of August.

The recently published Deloitte report commissioned by the University Limerick Hospitals Group found that an additional 302 inpatient beds are needed by 2026. It also outlined the detailed demand for additional staff in the emergency department with 83% of beds allocated to those who presented through the ED.

While a new 96-bed unit has started construction, this project remains 18 months from completion and will only deliver 48 additional beds. One does not need to be a mathematician to work this out. Following the Deloitte report, will the Taoiseach intervene or will the people of Limerick have to wait for years before they see any solution?

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