Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Hear, hear. Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach Gníomhach agus leis an Aire Stáit, who is very welcome to the House. I agree with the sentiments of my colleague, Senator Byrne, who, like me, has been inundated with people’s views on what is happening in Limerick. It is not at all attractive and is not something we can stand over.

In spite of the great work being done by the nurses, clinicians and consultants on the ground, a problem remains and I cannot really work it out. Some €40 million was spent on building a state-of-the-art, brand new accident and emergency department in 2014. A modular unit was then deemed necessary because the overcrowding persisted and €22 million was made available by the then Minister for Health, Deputy Harris, in 2017 to build a 62-bed modular unit on the grounds of University Hospital Limerick. Despite this, the numbers on trolleys at UHL are the highest in the country. They range from 80 to 100 depending on the day of the week. On Mondays and Tuesdays, the figure is usually over 90. The problem then seems to dissipate somewhat towards the end of the week because discharges and so forth run relatively smoothly.

We must ask what the management situation is in University Hospital Limerick. Are management clinicians on duty at weekends? I suspect not. Are people on duty at the weekend who are in a position to sign discharge documentation for people? I suspect not. I suspect we are dealing with a management issue, from both a front-door perspective in the hospital and a back-door discharge perspective.

A commitment has been made to have an independent inquiry and we are told it is to be carried out by the Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA. It is not ideal that HIQA is carrying out this inquiry given that it has already stated it does not consider that there is an issue in University Hospital Limerick. Really and truly, it should be an independent inquiry. If it is to be carried out by HIQA, let it be HIQA but let us get on with it. I want a timeline from the Minister of State for when the inspection and inquiry will start and conclude. Will the recommendations be published and acted upon?