Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)

I do not think anyone has a particular issue with providing corporate governance arrangements and accountability for the HSE. Deputy Cullinane dealt with this from the point of view of the smoke and mirrors we are seeing here. We are not seeing any real change with any of this. It is all well and good to look like the State is getting tough with the HSE about budget failures and overruns, but the necessary reforms need to be ensured.

We are talking about the multi-annual framework. We are dealing with the other inefficiencies within the system.

I do not know how many times we have spoken about everything, including ensuring we have the best of primary care, we have those pieces of community care in place and we have the best fit-for-purpose IT systems. We keep talking about digitalisation. On some level, some of that seems to be wrapped up in regard to the national children's hospital. Too much has been said in regard to that in latter days. We need that delivered but we need to be able to deliver the idea of digitalisation. Many people have spoken to me about that and it is generally a problem they have when dealing with accident and emergency departments. I have spoken to many people recently who have been in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda, and have been dealing with staff who are doing a huge amount of work and are under severe pressure. It is down to the number of people and the number of cases - sometimes complex cases that should be elsewhere - that there is severe pressure there. They about individual cases where sometimes they are dealing with a system that is not computerised as it should be. That is even in regard to communications between GPs and the hospital and notes taken in the hospital, particularly in the emergency department. That does not make any sense whatsoever in 2025. We all know the dangers that occur when we do not have the best of information provided in the most easily accessible way. That leaves room for things to go absolutely wrong.

We need to see we are resourcing hospital beds. We need to make sure we have the step-down facilities required. We know the huge issues in regard to care facilities and specialists to look after people so that they can get a package and free up the bed for other people.

Similar to Deputy Mark Ward, we, in Dundalk, would like to see delivery on the primary care centre. It is not just about the primary care centre; it is about those community pieces related to everything from mental health services right through. If I am talking about mental health services, I must mention we are still awaiting delivery on the ten-bed extension to the Drogheda department of psychiatry, DDOP, in Crosslanes. That would only provide Louth-Meath with, I think, 14.1 beds per 100,000, which is way below the State average, and the State average is not particularly good.

I have spoken to the Minister before about the pieces of work that need to be delivered in Louth County Hospital, Dundalk, regarding orthodontics. It is hard not to mention last night's debate on endometriosis. Recently, I and many others went to a meeting organised by Sinn Féin in my constituency and I was absolutely shocked. It was very similar to an awful lot that was said here. I am taken aback by the number of emails and contacts I have had from constituents about their personal plight since that debate. That is an issue we need to see delivery upon.

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