Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Tully for her question and assure her that I am fully committed to the development of Cavan General Hospital and to all of our regional hospitals right across the country. When I received the Deputy's question I asked for a note on the recent investment in Cavan hospital. It is all well and good with me saying what might happen in the future but I wanted to establish that real investment has been happening over the last few years and I have to say, the response is very encouraging. The budget in the lifetime of this Government has gone up by €16 million for last year. The full budgets for this year will obviously be agreed through the national service plan. Probably more importantly, since 2020 there has been an increase of nearly one quarter in the workforce. To me, that is always the most important bit because it is healthcare professionals, ultimately, who treat patients. That equates to 259 extra staff in Cavan hospital, which is a very clear commitment to the future growth and investment in the hospital. On top of that, the Deputy will be aware that a number of capital developments are in progress, which are going to be very important. One, of which Deputy Tully will be very aware, is the new three-storey extension block which will house a new endoscopy unit and an 18-bed ward. That is currently at detailed design stage and I want to see that progress because it will make a big difference to patient care in the area.

Recent initiatives in service expansion also include the establishment of a medical assessment unit, the feedback on which is very positive, and the further development of a geriatric assessment unit. The latter is something that we are rolling out across the country and the feedback around the country has been very good, particularly in terms of emergency department avoidance and receiving the appropriate care locally. Following the announcement of the budget allocation last year, I issued a letter of determination to the HSE. That kicks off the process for the national service plan and the detailed answer to the Deputy's question in terms of 2024 and the hospital will be available through that national service plan.

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