Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

On the day in question, the HSE figure was 401 patients between those in emergency departments and those in the wards. Regardless of whether we use the INMO figure or the HSE figure, both are still far too high. I met the emergency department task force earlier this week. There is a new approach we put in place last year. Many emergency departments, many patients and their families, and many of our staff are still under very significant pressure. However, I do want to acknowledge that our healthcare workers are getting on top of this. The Government has invested a lot of extra money. We have hired a lot of extra staff and added a lot of extra beds in the community and in the hospitals, but ultimately, any credit for the improvement must go to our healthcare workers. Putting aside UHL for a minute because it is entirely on its own in the increase in numbers, for the rest of the country combined, in spite of thousands more people coming into the emergency departments - we have had a 10% increase in the number of patients coming into emergency departments and being admitted - there has been a 20% reduction in the number of patients on trolleys. That is still not enough but, in fairness, that is a 30% spread between 10% more people coming in and 20% fewer people on trolleys. One very experienced emergency department doctor said it was the best turnaround he had seen in his many years of practice. The credit for that goes to healthcare workers. UHL is in a completely different space and we are taking a range of actions with it that are way above what we are doing with any other hospital.

We will continue with this work. We need to continue adding beds and we need to continue building up not just the emergency department teams but the hospital teams and the acute teams. We will continue putting in discharge options, home care, led by the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, and community beds. We have to keep that number going down. It does take time but we are moving in the right direction.

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