Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

My Commencement matter arises out of the difficulty that oncology patients in counties Mayo, Roscommon, Sligo and Donegal have in accessing the designated centre of excellence at University Hospital Galway. I acknowledge the great work and dedication of the health care professionals in this centre of excellence, as well as those who work in the various other hospitals under the oncology speciality, often in difficult circumstances. The problem is not their work but patients being able to access the centre of excellence in Galway when they need to.

Recently, I received a communication from the Saolta hospital group telling me that quite a number of people in different Saolta hospitals are waiting to access the urology speciality at University Hospital Galway. Some of these are oncology patients. This matter arose because I was making a representation on behalf of an elderly man who is in Mayo General Hospital but who needs to access both urology and oncology treatments. He has been in Mayo General Hospital for the past two weeks because there are no available beds in University Hospital Galway, the only hospital where urology services are available. This situation arises again and again. Many people will not speak up or have me speak up on their behalf because they are afraid it will affect their treatment. I know it will not.

What is happening is that sick cancer patients are admitted to hospital, Mayo General Hospital in the case of the elderly man I know, where they hold up a bed when nothing can be done for them but just to keep them comfortable. The only solution they have is to present themselves at the emergency department at University Hospital Galway. I do not need to tell the Minister of State that there were 41 people on hospital trolleys there yesterday. Once they are kept on trolleys, most of these people would not be in a great medical condition. It is not good for a centre of excellence that the only way somebody might get treatment or a diagnosis is by going to the emergency department. This has been going on for years. Nine years ago, a family member of mine was in a similar position. They would not leave their hospital bed because, if they got sick again, they would have to go through the emergency department. Not only is cancer a debilitating illness, when one is getting radiology treatment, but one is in no fit state to be hanging around an emergency department.

This is a serious matter. If we are committed to the provision of a centre of excellence, we have to ensure that there are additional beds if cancer patients require them. We must also ensure that when cancer patients need to come back into the centre because of an infection, they should not be thrown into the emergency department. I know of one case where a woman from Mayo attended University Hospital Galway at 11 a.m. but, when I inquired later, she still had not got a bed in the evening. I do not think this is good enough. If I raise this for a particular patient, then something might become available. I am also told about clinical priority. However, when one is dealing with people who are ill, the notion of clinical priority is a bit of a fudge. There is no capacity. What about people in Donegal and Sligo in the Saolta hospital group? This is an expansive geographical area.

Is this the best way we can use beds? I have a note from the Saolta group stating that there are people in various hospitals waiting to get into Galway. Obviously, they are holding beds in those other hospitals.

What about those cancer patients who are not in hospital, do not have an infection but are waiting to get into Galway hospital?Those people also exist. The particular gentleman for whom I have been making representations was discharged from Mayo University Hospital this morning. It was his choice to leave. He still needs to get into University Hospital Galway. The man is seriously ill. Will something be done here? Can we deal with seriously ill cancer patients in a different fashion with regard to University Hospital Galway and what is going on at the moment and which has been going on for the past ten years at least?