Dáil debates
Thursday, 5 March 2015
Topical Issue Debate (Resumed)
4:55 pm
Derek Nolan (Galway West, Labour)
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I thank the Minister for Health for his response. I am trying to read between the lines.
I welcome some of the positive investment in Galway University Hospital. It is the case that construction on a new 75 bed ward block will start next year which will have a big effect on the number of people on trolleys. However, we are still left with a completely inadequate, underdeveloped and unsafe emergency department. The Minister said he asked the HSE to ensure some funding is available. The term "some funding" is vague. Will some funding allow what I have asked to happen to take place? Will it allow the HSE in Galway to engage people to design an emergency department, go to planning and move it along the line? The capital plan is a number of years away. There is no point being in a capital plan if we do not have a project ready to go.
Will the Minister be clear with me, because this is extremely important to me, as a public representative, and to the people of Galway? Will he ensure the funding, for which he has asked the HSE, will allow the emergency department to be redesigned, to go to planning and to be brought along to a stage where it can be capital-funded in the future? There is no point applying some funding, which only goes halfway. We are either going to do something right or not do it at all. Will the Minister clarify that because it is particularly important. As he will have seen, the situation is getting worse as time goes on.
5:05 pm
Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I do not necessarily want to make promises that I might not be able to deliver but, I suppose, reading between the lines what I am saying is that I acknowledge there is a serious problem with overcrowding in the emergency department in UHG, about which I want to do something. It is better than it was in 2011 but it is starting to get worse again. It is certainly worse than it was this time last year. It is a very busy emergency department with 57,000 attendances in 2006, increasing to 65,000 attendances last year. Daily attendances can be as high as 258 patients so it is certainly one of the busiest departments in the country.
Much development is under way in UHG. It is certainly not being neglected but is being developed and improved all the time as a major regional centre and university teaching hospital at the heart of the Saolta group. What I am indicating is that I want to have it included in the next capital plan, if funding can be secured for it. I am indicating to the HSE that to see if it can find funding within its existing budget to begin planning and design for a new emergency department as soon as possible because it takes time to design, plan, get planning permission and so on. If funding is available in the post-2016 envelope, I would like us to be able to prioritise that project.