Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is important that we discuss this today. It is disappointing, however, that the Taoiseach, Deputy Harris, in his time as Minister for Health did nothing to sanction or secure funding for this. To be fair, Fianna Fáil has not been much better in health but at least this Bill is now being brought forward, towards the end of this Government. Will we see it passed in the light of day before a general election? We need this step forward to move away from the pen and paper and the back of a fag box. That is not the way to run a modern health service. We have seen the impact on patients, with files lost and people spending months waiting for files to be transferred from hospital to hospital. Often, they are unable to access their files to ensure they get the treatment they want. It should be a digital system. Why has it taken so long to get here?

I will caution that this cannot be a means to add more burden and bureaucracy to a health service that is already overwhelmed by bureaucracy and red tape.

This Bill must be used to reduce the time spent filling in forms. It must be an asset rather than a barrier. From speaking to representatives from community addiction services, I am aware that the bureaucracy they face in the context of the health service is huge. I recently spoke to a lady who works for 19 hours per week. She supports four clients and oversees the support provided to ten additional clients. She recently spent ten hours filling in forms to secure a grant of €5,000. This lady lost out on hours that she should have spent with the vulnerable people she helps and ensuring that the needs of the other people she oversees supports for were looked after. I am informed that this type of bureaucracy is being felt right across the various addiction services. It leads to long delays in accessing treatment, to staff burnout and to low morale as a result of staff having to do this. It is a disease in our health service and its symptoms are most acute in the community addiction services.

There is a need for the Government to bring forward solutions to the crises in CUH, the Mercy University Hospital and the South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital. A lady recently contacted me who was in agony waiting for a knee replacement. She was housebound and could not even get in or out of a car. She could not play with her grandchildren. Her quality of life was destroyed. This is a woman in her early 60s. I was told she was on an urgent waiting list to see a consultant. She will not see the consultant until 2027. Luckily, through pressure from me and on the basis of reports in The Echoin Cork, the lady was given an appointment for today. She was due to wait for three years in pain. How can anyone who is in urgent need of access to medical treatment be on a waiting list for three years? This lady could have been seen in the elective hospital if that hospital had been delivered. The Government has been in office for four years but is no closer to delivering an elective hospital in Cork. There is no planning permission, no workforce plan and not a sod turned. That is shameful when one looks at the waiting lists in Cork.

As an election draws closer, it must be stated that the people of Cork North-Central deserve better. They want clear decisions from the Minister and this Government. This will be the fifth election in a row in which promises will be made in respect of a hospital that has not been delivered.

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