Hildegarde Naughton (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his comprehensive reply. My reason for raising the matter this morning was to emphasise the importance of forward planning in University Hospital Galway. Over decades we have had add-ons in dribs and drabs and the hospital is still not capable of dealing with the demands placed on it. We must also consider a plan for the future, taking into account the congested city centre location of the hospital, and examine the potential of a site such as that in Merlin Park, which is under-utilised. A long-term plan is required. People accept that the Minister has no magic wand but it is important we carry out a review and examine the long-term plan not only for Galway but the western seaboard and how the facility can meet the demands of citizens.The Senator's points are well made in that we are often running to catch up in health care. We are doing exactly the same now with the additional 30 beds for the existing physiotherapy department in Galway which I hope will make the patient experience much better this winter. The additional 75 beds in the ward block currently under construction will be a significant benefit to the area. These beds will be in individual rooms which means the risk of infection such as MRSA and C.diff is dramatically reduced.

The hospital group may wish to examine where it sees the hospital in 20 years time and to engage in long-term planning, as the Senator suggests. That work is being done for the Cork hospitals and we have done that work for the maternity hospitals in Dublin, so perhaps there is a case for the hospital group to do some work on where it would see the hospital and what sort of hospital it would have in 20 or 30 years time. The story related by that retired nurse is very true and it shows how much things have changed. More hospital beds were needed in the past because day cases were not the norm and people stayed in hospital for procedures which are performed as day cases now. Also, people could not get home as quickly. Over time, we have needed fewer hospital beds rather than more. However, it is very difficult to predict future trends. American experts who come here say we have too many beds and that we use them inappropriately. For example, cancer centres in America may often have no inpatients because patients stay in a hotel on the campus of the hospital and are treated every day. The number of patients who need to be horizontal in a bed on a ward and nursed 24-7 is actually very low. We may yet find in the future that we do not need as many additional beds as we think.