Patricia Ryan (Kildare South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Sinn Féin's motion seeks to address the escalating crisis that has crippled the HSE, that is, the tragic scandal of hospital overcrowding and growing waiting times. Our people are suffering, in particular our elderly. I am my party's spokesperson for older people. Older people are being forced to endure waiting times that, in Naas General Hospital, can exceed 20 hours.

The Government's answer to this disarray is record cancellations. It mistakes activity for action and cancellations for solutions. Hospital waiting lists are going the wrong way. With each passing day under this Government, the situation is seriously worsening. Instead of treating symptoms, let us address the root cause. Patients are languishing on trolleys, procedures are being cancelled and there are growing waiting lists. They are not isolated issues, but interconnected symptoms of systemic failures.

Sinn Féin envisages a new trajectory, one that is defined by comprehensive reforms, increased accountability and patient-focused solutions. We propose the following: a sustainable, multi-year capacity plan. This will mean more hospital beds, more than 1,000 more than we have today. It will mean surpassing the Government's short-sighted goal of 1,500 beds and aiming for the 2,500 the ESRI believes are needed.

We are committed to building a health service that is both reliable and resilient. We seek to develop and retain professionals who will become the backbone of this service.

It is also time to accelerate Sláintecare reforms. Let us aim for a system where more care is delivered outside of hospitals and where outpatient appointments are managed in dedicated clinics untouched by the turbulence of emergency departments. Our health service deserves safe-guarded spaces for elective procedures and outpatient appointments. We must limit the impact of unscheduled care to prevent the chain reaction of cancellations that we are witnessing today.

Therefore, I am asking the Government to not oppose our motion but instead see this as a way to put people's health first, especially our older people, who need the most care in this delicate period of their lives.

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