Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)

I thank Deputy Quinlivan for giving me the opportunity to address the House on capacity at University Hospital Limerick and provide an update on measures that are being taken to alleviate overcrowding. Reducing emergency department overcrowding and reducing waiting lists is a priority for this Government. Many patients are still waiting too long for hospital appointments and treatments. UHL has one of the busiest emergency departments in Ireland. Presentations totalled 87,194 in 2024.

Between January and June this year, emergency department attendances at UHL were 9% higher than in the same period last year. Despite this, the daily average of patients counted on trolleys at 8 a.m. during this period is down 3% compared with the same period in 2024. However, too many patients are being treated on trolleys at UHL. More capacity is required but this must also be supported by a range of reforms across health services in the region.

There has been ongoing investment in additional capacity at UHL in recent years. UHL’s annual budget spend has increased from €265 million in 2019 to €507 million in 2024. A package of wide-ranging reform measures is also being implemented. These measures are aimed at capacity and reform of the health system in the region, including increased staffing levels. Staffing at UHL has grown by 48%, an increase of 1,337 whole-time-equivalent staff, from 2019 to May 2025.

More beds are needed in the hospital and across the mid-west region. Through Government investment, 140 new beds have opened in UHL since 2020. This includes the successful delivery of two fast-tracked 16-bed inpatient blocks which opened in December 2024 and in June this year. More new bed blocks are being developed which will provide up to 292 additional beds by 2028. This includes two 96-bed blocks, the first of which is expected to open in September 2025.

Bed capacity is being further expanded throughout the region through the acute hospital inpatient bed capacity expansion plan. This will deliver 572 new inpatient beds in the region by 2031, including 24 new beds at Nenagh Hospital, 48 new beds at Ennis Hospital and 42 new beds at St. John’s Hospital in Limerick. In addition, 25 virtual ward beds are operating at UHL.

In May 2024, the Health and Information Quality Authority, HIQA, was requested to conduct a review of urgent and emergency care in the mid-west region. The primary objective of this work is to ensure safe, quality acute care in the region. As part of this review, HIQA was requested to consider the case for a second emergency department in the context of the population changes in recent years and the ongoing pressures at UHL. HIQA published the terms of reference for this review in August 2024. A preliminary briefing was received at the end of February. This preliminary briefing was published in March by the Minister for Health. A final report is expected in September 2025. The Minister will then consider the findings of the report to ensure that the appropriate actions are taken to ensure safe urgent and emergency care that is both safe and of high quality. I would like to reassure the Deputy, and all patients and people in the mid-west, that this Government is fully committed to improving health services in the region.

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